Treasures
by Shahrazad63
Summary: Sea captains, pirates, treasures - and the green monster. Have fun! Please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler". It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins a couple of weeks before the _grand and glorious party_.

My thanks to my beta Mellie D. for pointing this ship into the right direction once more!

Disclaimer: I absolutely do not own "The Sound of Music".

**---**

"_**If the highest aim of a captain were to preserve his ship, he would keep it in port forever." **_

**_Saint_********_Thomas Aquinas._**

_**---**_

"Absolutely_ out of the question!_" the Captain barked.

Maria looked up from the storybook she was reading to Gretl and Marta, only to realize that they had not been paying any attention to the fairy tale. They seemed to be more interested in the scene developing on the terrace, not too far away from the tree under which they sat.

"What was that all about?" she inquired, whispering.

Friedrich exclaimed excitedly. "A mutiny!"

"Uh oh," whispered Louisa. "This is going to be good. He is pacing and entwining his fingers. That's never a good sign. Come on, let's go and see it," she said getting up.

"Do you think we should?" asked Brigitta.

"And waste a chance to see the Baroness being scolded by father?" said Louisa. "I would not miss it for the world.

"If I were the Baroness I would be very careful," said Liesl.

But Elsa von Schraeder was not the kind of woman to let herself be intimidated by the Captain's bark and bite. If she ever took one of the Georg´s _¨no"´s_ for an answer, she would not have succeeded in _bringing him back to life,_ as he had once so unromantically admitted to her. She held her ground, firmly.

"But it used to be so _marvelous_!"

"You've said it right: _used _to be," he snapped.

The children approached the table, cautiously. Maria remained behind, sitting under the tree, with Marta and Gretl. But she was still able to hear the argument.

"Darling, be reasonable. Some guests are arriving from Vienna a few days before the party, and we must organize something _fun_ for them to do while they are not attending concerts in town! Otherwise they will be bored to death. You must admit, the country is wonderful, but it is not for everyone."

"Why not a picnic?" Louisa suggested. Only then the Captain and Elsa did realize that they were surrounded by five children.

"Lovely and _original_ as it sounds; I don't think the British Ambassador and his wife would be comfortable with a _picnic_, Louisa." Then she turned to the Captain. "Georg?"

"No!"

Elsa decided to go for another tactic. The one argument Georg could not resist – his children. "Liesl and Friedrich might remember it, but the youngest ones… They never witnessed it, and it is hardly fair to them, isn´t it?" Elsa began.

The Captain's frown increased and he folded his hands in his back and resumed his pacing. Lately, Elsa seemed to have an unusual interest in his children. She began using their _names_. And now this – involving them in a conversation, asking for their opinions.

Treasure hunts used to be a von Trapp family tradition during the days of his marriage. It had been Agathe's idea, and he used to go along with it. Not necessarily because he enjoyed seeing guests snooping into every corner of the house looking for hidden clues, but simply because it made Agathe happy. He never joined the play, and remained an observer, having the task of writing the clues, and then presenting the prize to the winner. While the guests scanned the grounds of the Trapp villa searching for the treasure, he would wait in peace, somewhere, savoring a glass of his favorite wine.

"_You are __a brilliant strategist, Georg, and very, very cunning. Not to mention the fact that you have an unusually dark sense of humor, and _wicked_ mind. In every sense of the word. Your clues are almost diabolical. I don't think anyone else could do it better than you,"_ his wife would say to him, every year, whenever he tried to get away from the task.

Liesl´s voice brought him back from his reveries.

"I'm sorry, what darling?"

"What is out of the question this time, father?" She inquired again.

"You haven't changed your mind about the party, have you?" Brigitta asked, worriedly.

Maria, seeing that the debate was going on longer than what she guessed, began moving towards the older children. She certainly didn't mind being in the line of fire of the Captain's temper, but the children didn't need to involve themselves with his sour mood.

Elsa answered. "No, dear, he has not. But, oh well, here is something you children can help me with. And you too, Fraülein. The Captain needs some convincing, and I think you're just the nun to do it."

"And what makes you think that I am the one who will make him change his mind, Baroness?" Maria asked, with laughter in her voice, as if to say _you deal with him!_

"Oh dear!" the Baroness exclaimed, laughing. "If not you, then who else?"

"Elsa," the Captain warned. To Maria he graced his dry wit. "I am glad you finally came to your senses and decided not to join the enemy this time for a change, Fraülein."

"At least not until I know what the enemy has in mind, Captain," she retorted. "_And_ until I can decide which one of you is wrong. You've got to be right one of these days Captain." she retorted saucily.

He said nothing, and fired one of his indescribable glances at her.

The Baroness spoke, looking at the children. "I'll satisfy everyone's curiosity then. I was suggesting we revived an old family tradition, from the days of your mother."

Liesl´s face lit up. "Don't tell me… a treasure hunt?"

"I remember," Friedrich joined in.

"I don't," said Kurt forlornly.

"Remember when father hid the treasure inside mother's violin and…" the three older von Trapp children start speaking at once, excitedly, speaking about memory after memory, mentioning their mother repeatedly, while Maria, uncomfortably aware of the Captain's annoyance, tried in vain to quiet them. It was too much for him, she could tell.

Georg could not help but thinking that only a few short weeks ago, he would have yelled at the children and at their Fraülein, for not being able to control their endless chatter, and then send them to their rooms without dinner. But he could not do that anymore, _she_ would not let him. And now _she_ was there, watching him like a hawk, watching for the tale-tale signs that his temper had flared. He could sense her expectation of him doing just that, bracing herself for it, but at the same time, almost daring him to reprimand his children, so that she could confront him again. All of that with a disconcerting look on her face that he did not understand, and did not like.

No, he would not give her the pleasure of reprimanding him.

"I can't believe it. We are going to have a treasure hunt again, Fraülein Maria," Louisa exclaimed, her eyes sparkling.

"No, we are not!" the Captain said, but no one seemed to be paying attention to him.

The children continued chatting excitedly, and Maria decided to intervene.

"Children, don't you think you should hear what your father has to say about it?" She turned to him expectantly.

The Captain looked at her in disbelief. "Thank you, Fraülein."

She had a smug look on her face. "You're welcome, Captain."

_What is she up to_ he wondered.

"Can we, father?"

"Please!"

"We'll help."

"Yes!"

Elsa spoke again. "That's right, darling, they'll help. All you have to do is…"

"Clues," he said distastefully, trying to sound casual, but failing miserably.

"And you must be in charge of the prizes as well."

"Elsa, I have absolutely no idea…"

He stopped abruptly. How on earth did that happen? Had he just _agreed_ with that nonsensical idea? He stole a glance at his governess, and saw that she was absolutely glowing with victory. How had she done that? Because in a twisted, roundabout way, he sensed that he had been convinced – or at least, surrendered – because of _her_. She had done it. _Well played Fraülein_ he thought.

"Don't worry too much about it, Georg. Something trivial, nothing outrageously expensive – although if you do decide to surprise us, like you usually do, who am I to complain? A small trinket, a bauble, such as a diamond pin or earrings if the winner is a woman, or a fountain pen, if it is a man."

Maria's eyes widened. In times like these she was reminded of the huge gap between her life and the life of those people, to whom diamond pins were considered of such little value. She did not think she had ever seen a diamond pin, unless it was in a window display. She had certainly never held anything like that in her hands.

The Baroness continued. "You know, the fun is in the hunt itself, not in the prize! I wish I could help you, but I am fully booked. I _am_ the best hostess in Vienna for a reason, you know. There is so much work to do, and Max is no help at all. I have to see to the menu, the orchestra – and oh, my dress. My couturier is coming from Vienna just to see me on Friday. There is no way I will be able to go to Salzburg to shop for jewelry. Take Liesl with you."

"Yes!" the girl exclaimed. "Please, father. I have a _million_ ideas!"

"I am _not_ taking my sixteen year old daughter to a jeweler," the Captain retorted, adamantly.

"But father…"

"Fraülein Maria can help you!" Marta suggested excitedly. "She chose my pink parasol, and I loved it."

"Yes, I guess you can borrow her for a day or two," Louisa suggested, feigning innocence.

"She could help with the clues too," Friedrich suggested. "She can be wickedly good at coming up with new ideas."

_Wickedly good,_ the Captain thought. _Indeed._

"No, she can't," intervened Louisa again. "If she works with the clues she cannot play, and I want her on _my_ team."

"Who said _you_ would be allowed to play?" Kurt taunted his older sister.

Gretl looked at her father expectantly. "Will _we_ be able to play father?"

Looking into the eyes of his youngest daughter, he couldn't help but see Agathe. The young one's face so excited and so expectant, how could he say no? "Of course you will. I would hope that _one _of you would be able to figure out my clues. After all, you are _my_ children. If you can't read my mind, then who could?"

He was greeted with a chorus of excited children, all thanking him. And all arguing as to who would out-smart their father.

The Baroness's frowned. Maria was supposed to convince Georg to allow the treasure hunt, then keep the children out of the way during it. She didn't mind the children helping with organizing it, and assumed that they would be satisfied with that, and not want to play. She had assumed that the children _knew_ that they wouldn't be allowed to participate. They were to keep Maria away from Georg, not bring him closer to her.

Maria and Georg…

She began to fume at the idea. The night of that silly puppet show – how he kept looking at _her_. Ever since then, she noticed glances between them, unspoken conversations carried out in mere seconds as their eyes connected. Eventually she would have to do something about Maria, but meanwhile, she had to watch every new development and plan her actions very carefully, in order to avoid traps like the one she had just fallen into.

Turning her hear slightly towards the Captain, she noticed that his eyes were on Maria. Again. It seemed that whenever the little nun was around, his eyes would stray to her and follow her wherever she went. The girl was not entirely oblivious, because her eyes moved from one child to another, then to her, Elsa. But she never looked at him. Instead, she pretended to be busy with a non existent crease on her skirt.

_What to do?_ Elsa thought. If she confronted him now and her suspicions turned out not to be true, it would mean a terrible embarrassment. If her suspicious were correct, on the other hand, she might just open his eyes to something he wouldn't have seen for himself.

Patience was the key. She would not do a thing until she was entirely sure. That did not mean she could not give a little push, however, in order to make things go a little faster.

_Baroness Machiavelli,_ Max had called her. Sweet, dear Max – she wished he was there now.

"So, what do you think, Fraülein? Are you up to the task? Shall we go – uh - _shopping_?"

"Errr… I'm not sure, Captain. I don't know a thing about jewelry." Maria still avoided his eyes as she said that. It was odd, and it puzzled him. Until recently, she was never afraid to look him straight in the eye, especially when challenging him. But lately… "Liesl really would be a better choice."

Liesl turned to her father expectantly. If Fraülein Maria _somehow_ had been able to convince him to allow the treasure hunt, maybe she could convince him to take her to the jeweler. Before her father could answer, the Baroness interrupted.

"Oh, come now, dear. If there's one thing that every woman knows, it is diamonds!" Elsa said, and then as an afterthought added "And _men_." She cut her eyes over to the Captain, and winked at him conspiringly. "It is in our genes, whether we are nuns or Baronesses."

"Well, I'm afraid I'm not like every woman," Maria replied, uncomfortably.

"You're quite right, how could you know about _diamonds_?"

"Elsa!" the Captain barked. "Not again. We have discussed this."

_Oh my, should I start counting again?_The Baroness thought as he defended the weak little nun.(1)

"Anyway, dear, my point is, nun or not, you are still a female. You'll know what to do."

A/N: (1) See my story "Underneath her wimple".


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler". It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins a couple of weeks before the _grand and glorious party_.

Thanks once more to Mellie, for the usual magic touches! And to all reviewers, of course, for your feedback.

Disclaimer: I absolutely do not own "The Sound of Music".

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"_**Mysterious love, uncertain treasure, hast thou more of pain or pleasure! Endless torments dwell about thee: Yet who would live, and live without thee!**__**"**_

_**Joseph Addison**_

_**---**_

They drove in silence for a while. The scenery was just too beautiful for Maria to keep her attention anywhere else, even on the sea captain sitting next to her, so she chose not to talk. In addition to the glorious mountains, her tongue was kept silent by wanting to savor what was another new experience for her – riding in a car. Buses, trains and bicycles were part of her world, but never before she had ridden in a car, and especially not a fancy one. She had always relied, above all, on the best means of transportation, provided by the good Lord Himself: her two strong legs.

It was the sight of a group of children rowing a boat that brought her attention to him. She had to admit that it was a bit unsettling to be alone with him like this, outside of the villa. Of course the rational part of her mind told her that she had nothing to fear, but still she felt - insecure... Something odd for someone who prided herself in being confidence personified.

His full attention was on what he was doing: driving. And he drove with the ease and skill she would expect from someone who could easily handle every means of transportation known to man. Maria had been surprised to learn from Friedrich not long ago that the Captain could even _fly a plane_! All right, she conceded to herself, he drove a little too fast at times, which was probably the cause of Max's occasional playful comments about him driving like a maniac. But she did not feel in any danger, quite the contrary in fact. It was not his driving skills that scared her.

Maria allowed her thoughts to stray in a dangerous direction. The Baroness's comments from the previous day haunted her. Did every woman know about men? She conceded that even _she_ knew that he was _handsome._ Dashing and debonair also came to mind. His hat, slightly tilted to one side, gave him a kind of roguish air, and he had the look of a confident man who was very pleased with himself. If he was annoyed because he had been persuaded to allow a mundane thing such as a treasure hunt to disturb the tranquility of the Trapp villa, he did not show it. Maria was simply fascinated, and drank in the sight of him.

However, she would also be naïve to think that he was not aware that she had been watching him for a while.

"Do I pass your inspection, Fraülein?" he asked, keeping his eyes on the road. His tone was playful, teasing, and only vaguely sarcastic.

Quickly, Maria looked away, focusing her eyes on the picture perfect landscape again, hating to have been caught in that minor transgression. Again. She cringed. It was not the first time he had caught her staring at him, and it was unlikely that it would be the last. A fiery blush crept up her cheeks. "I am sorry, Captain." Then she proceeded with the first thing that came to mind as an excuse. "I – I am not used to driving."

"And I am not used to having you so quiet for such a long time." He stole a sideways glance to her, but she was looking at the landscape. No one had bothered to tell her to wear a hat herself, and now her short hair was impossibly ruffled by the wind. She did not seem to mind at all, and he wondered if she was even noticing it. Strange creature the little Fraülein was – she was apparently totally devoid of any sign of vanity, but the care she had when she made certain that his girls look _girlish,_ even ignoring Louisa's protests - told him otherwise. It would be interesting to see how she reacted to one of the top female temptations – diamonds. The thought brought a half smile to his lips.

"Uh - the mountains had my full and complete attention," she spoke, unaware that she had just contradicted herself.

"Oh yes, the mountains. Naturally." When he realized that she didn't intend to continue the conversation, he added, "for a moment I thought you were engaged in a mental debate to decide once and for all whether I do or do not look like a sea captain."

She turned quickly to him. "Oh, but that is settled, Sir – you do _not_! I don't have to think about that one anymore."

"Who are you comparing me with reach such a definite conclusion?" He looked at her, with a wicked grin. "Captain Nemo?"

Smiling, Maria looked down at her hands. When she was about seven years old, she had developed the most ridiculous crush on the character after reading Jules Verne's books. She used to dream that she would marry a sea captain one day. A submarine captain, just like Captain Nemo. And he would take her aboard the Nautilus and they would live happily ever after. But that was before the convent, before her family was shattered. And then she came across the one and only sea captain she had ever met before Captain Georg von Trapp. She had not liked him; he had scared the hell out of her. Nemo and his Nautilus were pushed out of her mind.

"No, not quite," she answered. "I knew a sea captain once, and he looked nothing like you." That was the truth, at least.

"You mean to tell me you drew your conclusions about us all sea captains based upon your knowledge of _one_?"

Maria shrugged. "I was a very impressionable twelve-year-old at the time. The image remained with me, even though he was probably not even a real sea captain."

"Then, I feel it is my duty to warn you. You are meeting a pirate today." He glanced at her, wanting to see her reaction.

Her eyes wide, she looked at him in surprise. "A pirate? Here in Salzburg?"

"A sailor cannot always choose where to drop his anchor, Fraülein." He then explained. "His name is Hans Schneider, and he was the best torpedo man I have ever had the privilege of working with. Now he owns the place where we are going to get our treasure."

"Is he really a pirate?" She looked at him in wonder.

"I would not say that to his face if I were you. He is something of a treasure hunter, but he prefers to be called an _antique dealer_. But he certainly does look like a pirate."

"Oh." Maria made no other comment, and silence fell among them again. Pirates and sea captains, such a fanciful world. She looked at the captain. Did he _really_ know a pirate? She found herself studying him again. His jaw was strongly set, a hint of a smile on his lips.

The monastery choir was heard when they began to approach Salzburg, their Gregorian chants echoing in the wind. He turned to his right, looking to the monastery, his arm naturally coming to rest on the seat behind her. It was an unconscious gesture, completely uncalculated. But Maria felt a blush creeping up her cheeks and she turned to listen to the reverberating voices. _Why am I so uncomfortable?_ She thought. Why was she blushing at the mere presence of this man? She looked at the building, alone on the hill. She couldn't help but think how lonely those monks must feel, so isolated and secluded, and wondered, not for the first time in the past few weeks, if she was ready to embrace that kind of life. She had always gone to the mountains to find peace and solace, but not to necessarily be alone.

"Do you miss your Abbey?" he asked abruptly, thinking, for a brief second, that it was odd that he was the one making an effort to keep their conversation going, and not her. It was odd, he found that he didn't like her silence, he wanted to hear her insights on everything. "Fraülein?" he insisted, when she did not answer him.

Still looking at the lonely monastery she replied without thinking. "No," she began, but it sounded…her eyes became wide when she realized what she had said. "I mean, _yes_!" She corrected herself. That was the problem with her inexperience; it made unable to lie, because the truth would be out of her lips before she could control herself. That made her as transparent as the walls of the gazebo in the garden of his villa.

Noticing her slip, he gave her something safe to talk about. Removing his arm from the seat behind her, he inquired, "And what do you miss the most? The singing?"

Still horrified at her earlier admission and not trusting herself, she replied "Not really."

_Safety – I miss being safe,_ she thought, but it did not seem appropriate to reveal that to him. Being safe, and not having to deal with the unknown feelings that seemed to take over her body and soul at the oddest times is what she missed most. Ever since the day the subject of holy sins and deathly virtues came up, she seemed to be at odds with herself. The holy sin of envy seemed to creep up on her every now and then. She envied the Baroness's charm, grace, and beauty.

Realizing that _again_ she wasn't going to continue the conversation he prodded her. "And why is that? Because you enjoy singing from the trees with my children?"

She smiled, remembering the day of his arrival back home. Feeling the need to defend herself, she continued, "I am much more free to sing when I am not in the Abbey. We - we are encouraged to keep silent most of the time. There are some nuns who made a vow of silence and have not said a word in years. Singing is restricted to choir rehearsals, and during mass, of course. And even then, only religious music is permitted."

"And how on earth does someone like you live up to those particular orders?"

"_Someone like me_?"

"Yes. Boisterous. Rebellious. A tomboy."

"I don't know, but I must learn, mustn't I?!"

"I would imagine so. Is that why you were so much trouble to the nuns?"

"Yes, that, and… other things."

"Mmmm… What _other things?_"

She thought for a moment. "I am known employ unusual means to accomplish a task." He chuckled. "You see, Captain, if I have a job to be done that is what is important, and not necessarily _how_ I get it done. I just want to do what I have to do as quickly as possible, in order to move on to the next task. Saving time is everything, I learned that the hard way very early. Life in a convent is very busy, especially for a postulant. We don't just pray all day."

"And if do your tasks quickly enough you have time for your… _daydreaming_, and singing. And your mountains." She did not deny it. "You are a true Machiavellian, Fraülein!"

"I beg your pardon?"

"_The end justify the means_," he quoted. _Finally_ she's speaking to me, he thought.

"Mm – I never thought of that. Is that a good or a bad thing?" She looked at him skeptically.

"I suppose it depends on how you look at it. You can't make an omelet without breaking an egg, but you certainly can cook without destroying the kitchen."

"Mm - I am not sure _I_ can. The last time I tried to bake a cake I _blew up_ the kitchen." A smile returned to her lips.

"What?!" he stepped on the brakes.

"I blew up the kitchen," she repeated candidly. "Well, the oven, but the nuns would tell you otherwise. Not to mention the little incident with the cook."

"What – uh – _little incident_?"

"Never mind, Captain, it is a long story."

"O-ho, we have the time." And with that, he made a turn and took another road, hoping that Maria would not notice that he had just chosen a longer route. He was enjoying her talk too much to allow it to end so soon, Salzburg and its pirate could wait.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler". It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins a couple of weeks before the _grand and glorious party_. I am publishing two chapters - 3 and 4 - at once because they are all about the same scene, and there is a continuity that I would like to keep.

Just a little warning: I decided to add a bit of spice in this chapter. Nothing at all explicit, just enough to make Georg and Maria a bit flustered.

Mellie D. was once more essential in giving this chapter its final shape, and encouraging me to "go for it"!. My big warm thanks to her!

Disclaimer: I absolutely do not own "The Sound of Music". Except on DVD, of course.

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"_**Never waste jealousy on a real man: it is the imaginary man that supplants us all in the long run." **_

_**George Bernard Shaw.**_

---

Keeping up with the Captain in the busy streets of the Altstadt, was a challenge, even for Maria. He walked fast, with a steady rhythm that even she, who was used to running, found hard to follow. Maybe because there were too many sights and sounds attracting her attention, and not only the forbidding countenance of the man walking a few feet ahead of her. Once in a while, he would look behind him and notice that she had slowed her pace to look at a particularly attractive shop, or to listen to a musician, and he would immediately call her attention with the usual "Fraülein!", or a much more effective ominous glare.

He suddenly made a sharp turn to the right, and entered a narrow alley. The alley led to a patio, with several small shops, which appeared to be very elegant and exclusive. They reminded Maria of the ones advertised in a fashion magazine the Baroness had been reading. He did not enter any of those shops, much to Maria's relief. Although she would love to see what they had to offer, she thought that she would feel very out of place with all of the silk and gold. Instead, he walked towards a plain and very rustic wooden door. Turning around, he saw her gazing at her own reflection in a window shop. She let out a moan as she finally noticed the disastrous state of her hair. The captain couldn't help but smile; somehow she looked more like herself with her hair in disarray – and even less like a governess.

"Fraülein!" he exclaimed impatiently, not allowing any of his mirth show. She lowered her head and walked to the now open door. She noted it's rustic feel and thought to herself, _this door seems my type._ It led to a narrow, dark stairway. She followed him up the stairs which ended at another door. There he stopped and turned abruptly to face her.

As she reached the landing, he spoke. "Two final warnings, Fraülein. His wife is a bit of an eccentric."

"Oh, I can live with that, Captain."

"Another thing – I would not open any of the books lying around, if I were you."

Before she could ask him why, he pushed the door open, revealing a small shop crammed with treasures of ever kind. Maria could not hold back a small cry of surprise. It was like falling inside Aladdin's cave.

"_Jesus, Mary and Joseph_!" The Captain turned to look at her in surprise. He smiled as Maria raised her eyes in prayer, asking for forgiveness for her blasphemy. "I'm sorry, dear Lord, but I couldn't help it this time."

The room was a pandemonium of objects from all over the world. There was jewelry, as expected. But there were also piles and piles of fabric, silk and brocade. There were marble and bronze sculptures, and golden goblets. Porcelain vases, painted ceramic pots of every size and shape. Persian carpets, books, maps and engravings. And crystals, lots and lots of crystals. It was just too much to take in at once, and she felt slightly dizzy.

_Mayb__e you can't judge a store by its door_ she thought. _Or a book by its cover…_

A woman entered the room, coming from a door adorned with a curtain of sparkling crystal beads. She was dressed in a Chinese manner, wearing a blue silk robe, richly embroidered with golden and silver threads. But the woman herself was not Chinese, and that could be immediately seen, because she had the brightest red hair Maria had ever seen. At first, she just stared at the Captain, her mouth open.

"Oh my Lord… _Hans_!" she yelled. Both the Captain and Maria winced. She kept talking to her absent husband, without tearing her gaze away from the Captain. "You will _not_ believe who just walked through that door. _Get over here_!"

"Peggy, I have already asked you a million times not to scream like that when…" The man stopped talking when he too saw the arriving couple.

The man wore eye patch over his right eye. Maria blinked, and the Captain watched her reaction closely. He could not help but show his amusement with a mischievous wink. She stared back at him with the exact same expression she had on her face when he blew the boatswain whistleHe briefly wondered if he had been wearing an eye patch that day if he would have looked more like a sea captain to the impressionable nun.

_For an aristocrat, he does have some unusual friends,_ Maria thought. There was definitely more to Captain von Trapp than aristocracy and silly whistles. It was astonishing because she at first had imagined that his friends would be of the conventional type, like Baroness Elsa von Schraeder. It was Max Detweiler who would be the first to prove that assumption wrong. And now the foreign looking lady in Chinese clothing and the man with an eye patch.

_Don't__ forget that he was first and foremost a sailor;_ a voice inside her head reminded her.

"Well, well, well," the man began. "Look who has finally decided to rejoin the world of the living!"

"It is nice to see you too, Hans," Georg replied. Stepping forward, he proceeded to greet the couple, displaying a certain degree of affection that took Maria entirely by surprise. She did not move from where she was, although her eyes tried to take as much as possible of the treasures that surrounded her. Her eyes grew wide when she realized that the statue in front of her was _nude!_ She quickly averted her gaze, only to find herself staring at a painting of a scantily clad woman lounging on a chair.

_That is certainly not what the Reverend Mother had in mind when she said I should "go out into the world",_ she thought. _What a curious place!_

She looked to the Captain and discovered that she had apparently been forgotten by the trio. Maria moved from her location to one that looked a little more…safe. Finding a large book lying on a table to her left, she couldn't help but be curious. It was covered in dust. She read the title, and it suggested her that it was a fairy tale book.

"_I would not open any of the books lying around, if I were you_," he had warned. But how could a book possibly hurt her? And a _fairy tale_ book about scented gardens? The image of the gazebo sprung to her mind. No, there should be no danger in it, should it?

She opened the heavy volume. Her eyes fell upon a colorful illustration of an embracing couple. She squinted, not quite being able to figure out exactly what she was seeing, since there were so many details and so many colors. She turned the book upside down to get a better view of what she was looking at. Suddenly, as her face turned beet red, she realized _exactly_ what she had been looking at. She began to understand why the nuns never spoke of the moral sin of lust in explicit terms.

That's what curiosity got her, either an eye full or a direct scolding. Feeling the flame in her cheeks, she would have gladly traded in her embarrassment for a scolding from the Captain right now. Although shocked by the colorful picture, she was more surprised by her eyes straying over to the next page.

Well, she _had_ been warned, hadn't she? She hastily closed the book, which unfortunately lead her to drop it back on the table, stirring up a small cloud of dust to her nose and making her sneeze.

"_God bless you!_" said the Captain, turning to her.

She looked down, the darn book had flown open to another page. This one with a portrait of what appeared to her to be the garden of Eden, only with more _imagination._ She quickly shut the book again, this time succeeding in keeping it closed. She prayed that the captain would never realize what she had been looking at. But obviously he had noticed it, and even if he had not seen her snooping, the color of her face would be enough to tell him the whole story. She quickly averted her gaze from him, unable to look him in the eye after what she had seen in that second picture. Her cheeks became even redder at that thought.

The Captain couldn't help but tease her as he noted that _again_ she couldn't follow simple instructions. "Find anything you like?" He casually leaned his hand against a statue, taunting her.

Maria looked at him aghast. She moved her mouth as if to speak, but no words would come out. _Did he know that he was groping _that_ part of the nude female statue? _He had a stance similar to the man in the second picture she had seen in the book.

Georg noted that she wasn't looking at him, but slightly to his left. He looked aghast as he realized he had placed his hand over the marble statue's breast. He quickly withdrew his hand, and turned as Hans spoke.

"And who are you?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," the Captain excused himself. . "This is Fraülein Maria, my governess. Uh, my _children's_ Maria." He paused as he realized his second slip and continued, "well you know what I mean." Then he cast a quick glance to Maria. "Fraülein, this is my friend Herr Schneider, and his wife, Peggy. Hans is a - a treasure hunter."

"We prefer _antique dealer_," he said, walking over to Maria to shake her hand. "Or, as the old _Baron_ here likes to say, a buyer and seller of useless but expensive junk from all over the world. I am pleased to meet you, Fraülein. Welcome to my cove." Then he turned to the Captain. "And what brings you both here?"

"We were sent on a mission, Hans." Then he proceeded telling him about Elsa's plans.

"Oh, how exciting!" exclaimed Peggy, clasping her hands together. "We have a million things that would be perfect for the occasion."

"Before we get into that, love," Hans interrupted his wife. "Georg, have I shown you the new…" Georg coughed and cut his eyes at Maria. Taking the subtle hint, Hans continued delicately, "er… item in my collection?"

"I don't believe so."

"How could you, darling? He has not graced us with his presence for so long!" she silenced. And then, to Maria, Peggy Schneider explained, as the men left the room. "My husband's hobby is to collect rare books. I don't see any fun in it, but, oh well. Men!"

She looked at Maria, and noted that there was still a red hue to the woman's visage. She gestured to a nearby display of precious stones of every color and shape. "I know," she began, knowingly. "I grew up in a small fishing village in Ireland, and although I have been married to my Hans for almost twenty-five years this still overwhelms me." She picked up a diamond tiara and placed it on top of her curly red hair. "I love doing this," she admitted. "My husband is not amused when he catches me toying with his precious stones, but I don't care. I was very poor growing up, so I am making up for it now, playing dress up with all of these wonderful things." Then she turned Maria. "Tell me, Your Highness, what do you think of this tiara? For the Opera Ballin Vienna?"

Maria, smiling mischievously, immediately joined the play. "_Your Highness?!_" she replied in mock offense. "How _dare_ you lower my rank like that?"

"Oh, forgive me, Your _Royal_ Highness." Peggy made a low curtsy to Maria.

"Much better. Apology accepted. As for your tiara, I think it is, a bit too much, don't you think _Your Majesty_?" She curtsied.

"Pretentious, isn't it? Oh well…" she picked up another tiara, smaller and more delicate, an exquisitely intricate pattern of diamonds and pearls. "But this would suit you perfectly. The Maharajah will not be able to take his eyes off you!" She began reaching for Maria's head with the tiara.

"Frau Schneider!" exclaimed Maria, stepping out of her character for a moment and away from the woman.

"Call me Peggy. May call you Maria?"

"Naturally!"

"Now don't be silly, and let me do this." Maria giggled, and let her place the tiara on top of her still ruffled hair.

"Oh, I don't know. They say that pearls are not quite the thing this year!" said Maria, looking upwards.

"You think?"

"Hummm…"

"You may be right, because…" Peggy ran to the other side of the room, "… the tiara is nothing without this!" She placed an embroidered white silk cloth around Maria's shoulder. Then she stepped back and studied the effect.

"Oh, oh, oh, but this is _beautiful_," Maria exclaimed. The fabric was so light and sheer that she did not feel its weight on her shoulders.

"You look like a bride!" Peggy exclaimed. "No, let me correct that. A little too pagan for a bride, perhaps." She thought for a moment, tilting her head to one side. "I know – a vestal! A high priestess. That is what you remind me of."

Maria smiled, shaking her head. They both admired their image in the mirror, unaware at this point that they were already being watched by the two men. The play acting continued – to Maria it came naturally, for it was one of the girl's favorite games. They spoke in mock, upper class accents.

Maria looked at herself. She thought she looked quite ridiculous wrapped in silk and wearing the diamond and pearl tiara. But it felt oddly… glamorous as well. The Baroness was right; she was a _female_ of course.

Peggy placed a large string of pearls on Maria, which accented the tiara perfectly. Maria twirled looking at her appearance in the mirror. As she turned, she noted that the Captain and Hans had returned. She let out a gasp of surprise at seeing him. Peggy turned to discover the reason for Maria's gasp and came face to face with her husband and the captain. Unable to resist prodding Georg, Peggy exclaimed, "You should know to bow before royalty!"

The Captain raised his eyebrow in question of the other woman's imagination.

"Peggy, I have already asked you not to…" her husband began.

"Oh, shut up Hans. And don't scowl. I like doing this, and you should get used to it, after twenty-five years. Let me indulge myself. It is not everyday that I have such good company to play along with me. By the way, where did you find her, Georg?"

"Who?" he asked, obviously distracted by the sight of Maria wrapped in a veil of white silk.

"Maria, of course!"

"_Maria,_" he whispered, almost inaudibly, still unable to stop looking at her. Realizing Peggy had asked him a question, he quickly answered "Uh - _Fraülein_ Maria? Nonnberg."

"The Abbey?" Peggy sounded incredulous.

"Of course the Abbey," Hans began mumbling.

"I don't think that would fit under your mantilla, Fraülein," said the Captain, pointing to the sparkling tiara. "Or should I say – uh - _Your Royal Highness_." He bowed to her mockingly.

Maria, blushing to the roots of her hair, touched the tiara lightly. "You're right, Captain, the nuns wouldn´t find it amusing."

She then carefully removed the pearls, missing the weight of them against her neck. "You better keep these in a safe place, I wouldn't want to damage them – I am not good with delicate things," she said apologetically.

"You are a _nun?_" Peggy asked in disbelief, taking the silk and pearls from her hands.

"No, not yet, but I will be. I plan to take my vows once the Captain is no longer in need of a governess."

"And here I was saying you looked like a _pagan_ and calling you a vestal virgin," she muttered. "I am so sorry, that was uncalled for. If I offended you…"

"Don't worry; you had no way of knowing. I don´t look very much like a _nun_." The Captain raised a quizzical eyebrow.

"What are you doing here, in this _decadent_ place?!" She turned to the Captain. "Georg, you… scoundrel! How could you?"

"This place was not quite as decadent the last time I was here, Peggy. I see that your husband has made some..." he gazed at the statue, " uh - _improvements_ in that direction."

_"A__ nun__!" Peggy repeated, still incredulous. _The Captain gave Peggy a short version of Maria's story. "You mean to tell me that if I want to see you by this time next year I will have to go to a convent?"

"Yes, but you won't be able to; I most likely will be cloistered."

"_Cloistered_! Oh! What a waste!"

"For God's sake, Peggy," her husband began.

When she saw the look in Maria's face, she added. "Georg, you must keep her as a governess until young Gretl is an old maid - you can't let this girl lock herself in a convent. There is too much _life _inher for such a fate." She turned to Maria and continued to speak. "You are made to drive a man crazy and give him lots of children, not to waste away in isolation." She turned back to Georg. "There must be _something_ you can do," she said resolutely, as they walked to a table, where the "trinkets", more suitable to be used as prizes for the treasure hunt, were on display. The expression on the Captain's face was unreadable.

Maria didn't know what to think of Peggy's declaration – her? Drive men crazy? Have children? And what was so odd aboutwanting to dedicate her life to a higher purpose? She wandered over to the table of trinkets pondering these ideas.

"Ummmmm… Fraülein?"

"What?" she turned around and her nose almost crashed with the Captain´s chest. She didn't realize he had been following so close to her. He pointed to the top of her head. Maria had forgotten to remove the tiara.

She murmured an excuse, removing the crown, but it caught in her hair in the process.

"Allow me, please," he said, coming to her aid. Their hands brushed in the process, and she jumped a little.

Mistaking her reaction, Peggy said, "Don't worry, Maria you are in very capable hands. Our Captain here is quite the expert in removing women's…"

"_Peggy_!" Her husband silenced her, but was again solemnly ignored.

Peggy turned to Georg, baiting him. "Well, if Captain von Trapp is not going to do anything about saving this young woman from the nunnery, then I will. I know quite a few fine, _handsome, _eligible young men who I could introduce your Maria too. Oh dear," she spoke directly to Maria now. "What was I thinking? Forget all of them, first you must meet Johann, my son!"

"Over my dead body!" The Captain snapped. When silence fell and the three other people stared at him, open mouthed, he added, at light speed. "I will _not_ allow that philandering son of yours anywhere near my governess."

"Johann is not a philanderer, is he?" Peggy asked her husband.

"Oh yes, he is. And of the worst kind," he admitted, not without a good deal of typical male pride. His wife rolled her eyes in distaste.

"Men!" she exclaimed.

The Captain continued. "I am here to make a purchase, and not to find Fraülein Maria a husband. And if she did want a husband, I'm sure she could find one."

"Where? Certainly not in the convent, and from what I understand, she's at your home night and day. Where would she find a suitable man? In your backyard?"

"Peggy!"

"Hans!"

"Captain!"

Maria uttered the exclamation with her best strong voice, and they all looked at her at once. Silence fell; one could hear the several clocks in the room tickling.

_Say something_, she urged herself. _Anything_.

"Uh – don't you think we should… do what we came here to do?" she asked timidly.

He simply nodded. And then he spoke to his friends. "Hans, Peggy – I apologized for my outburst. Please forgive me. Now, would you please show us what you have in mind?"

He turned to look at the table of trinkets, but was unable to look at anything but the young Fraülein.

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A/N: Thank you for your reviews and feedback. I am sorry that I don´t always have the time to answer all of you, individually, but be sure your words are very much appreciated! I am especially curious about what you will say of this one.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler". It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins a couple of weeks before the _grand and glorious party_.

I "borrowed" a line from _Die Trapp Familie._ I don´t own that either.

Disclaimer: I absolutely do not own "The Sound of Music".

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"_**Women and God are the two rocks on which a man must either anchor or be wrecked**__**" **_

_**Frederick W. Robertson.**_

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"Fraülein, what do you think?" The Captain took a pair of large chandelier earrings in his hand, raised them to his eye level, and shook them, "These?"

Peggy groaned and shook her head. Maria wrinkled her nose in distaste. "It looks like something Sister Berthe would wear only if she were allowed to."

The Captain looked at Maria. He realized he should know who Sister Berthe was, and apparently her taste in jewelry. However, whenever Maria spoke about her life at the Abbey, he always seemed to tune her out and try and imagine her as a quiet, meek and mild postulant. So far, he hadn't been successful with the quiet, the meek, or the mild – he could barely imagine her as postulant! He gave her one of his mildly annoyed half-smiles and dropped the offending earring. Would they ever find something suitable for the treasure hunt? He was anxious to leave his eccentric friends – he was sure that God would smite him for bringing a nun in training into such a… less than virtuous store.

"How about this?" Maria held up a gold and ruby cross.

"Uh… no, Fraülein." He grimaced. "That looks like something my great-grandmother would wear."

"Wait, I think I might have something interesting," Peggy said. She took a box from a locked drawer underneath the display. "These are handmade. Very delicate, and very, very precious. The artisan is an Italian from Venice, and he only made five of them, and now they are scattered all over the world. There is a sinister legend behind it, you must ask Hans to tell you about. They say that the King of Siam has bought two, and is furiously hunting for the remaining three of the set. They are lockets, and although each one is incrusted with the purest diamonds, each one has a different stone for the eye. Sapphire, emerald, ruby, topaz and amethyst. We were lucky to get our hands in this one."

Next to her, the Captain did the same. In the past hour, he had just been reminded of how unorthodox Hans and Peggy Schneider were, and he chastised himself again because he had brought a _nun in training_ to meet them. And not any nun – Maria.

_Fraülein Maria_, he reminded himself firmly. He was puzzled as to why he had begun using her first name, even in thought. She was his governess…er, his _children's_ governess. _Damn Hans for having so many nude statues around!_ He thought. _Yes, that's it, I'm just out of sorts because of all of the statues, and paintings, and books._

_Fraülein Maria_, he reminded himself firmly. The reasons why lately he had began using her first name, at least in thought, were beyond him.

_I should be court martialed_, he thought. _Bringing _her _of all people here. Elsa would have the time of her life, undoubtedly, since, in spite of her conventional ways, she was attracted by anything that was a bit eccentric. But Maria – Fraülein Maria… What was I thinking?I should be… keelhauled._

They both sighed in relief when the box was opened. The next reaction was one of wonder. Inside there was a delicate locket, in the shape of a dragon. The blue stone in the beast´s eye was the exact same shade of the Captain´s eyes. It was just the thing that Maria secretly loved – probably because of it's heathen quality. Deep inside, it felt almost like a sin to her, maybe because of the fanciful dragon, or for the shiny diamonds, she wasn't sure. Her fingers ached to touch it, but she denied herself the pleasure, as she noticed the Captain moving to pick it up.

"This is exquisite," the Captain´s deep voice intruded. He took the box from Peggy, bringing it closer for his examination. "Are you sure Hans will be able to part from it? I know how attached he is with some of his – uh - trinkets."

"If that means making you pay an indecent amount of money for it?" Hans asked from somewhere behind them. "Oh yes!"

The Captain. "Which brings me to another point…"

Peggy interrupted. "Now, I know what you are going to say, Captain, but first think about it. You´ll be entertaining the aristocracy, diplomats and dignitaries. Not to mention that very special lady we all have been hearing so much about - Baroness Schraeder. From what you've told me of her, I would expect her to make this a lavish event, and the reward to the champion should do it justice. The locket is very elegant, it is not too… flashy. Even a gentleman will enjoy winning it, because of its value and history not to mention the legend behind it."

The Captain turned to Maria, seeking her opinion. "It certainly much more interesting than a fountain pen, Sir," she commented.

He thought for a moment. "Remind me, Fraülein, how exactly have I gotten myself into this one?"

_And how have _I _gotten myself in this one_? she wanted to ask. "I am not quite sure, Captain, but my guess would be that it has to with your children."

_Or their governess_ he thought. "Oh yes, you are! Never mind," He then turned to Herr Schneider. "Hans, your wife certainly knows her business. I´ll take it!"

Peggy gave a cry of joy, clasping her hands. "Wonderful!"

Maria´s mouth fell open. He had not even _asked_ for the price. But then she remembered the Baroness sneering about how _déclassé _it was to ask for the price of something you wanted to buy. If it were Maria, she would be bargaining for every cent off she could possibly get. If there was one thing the very rich hated, it was talking about money. If she learned nothing else from her stay with the von Traps, it was those who have money, don't speak of it, and those without speak of nothing else. She also remembered one of Herr Detweiler´s constant comments about the Captain´s wealth:

"_I like rich people. I like the way they live. I like the way I live when I'm with them."_

_Yes, but don´t get too used to it,_ a voice in her conscience warned.

Peggy turned her attention to Maria, and added effusively. "And you, my dear, I am counting on _you_ to beat all those snobs and win it. It would bring out the color of your eyes so well."

"Aahem…" Maria did not know what to say. "Oh, Frau Schneider - Peggy, I…" It would be too- wrong, it was a dragon, a dragon made of diamonds. Dragons just weren't allowed in the Abbey walls – at least that's what she hoped. Finding her voice, she finally found a reason _not_ to want the dragon. "That is very kind of you, but I am not going to take part in the game."

The Captain turned to her in surprise. "Why not?"

"Captain, I could not possibly!"

"Fraülein, you are not going to disappoint _my_ children, are you?"

"I thought…"

"You thought I would let my seven children running loose in a house full of guests without proper supervision?!"

"But… but… even if…"

"You have _met_ my children, haven't you?" He smirked at her.

"Of course sir, but the Baroness…"

He made an impatient gesture. "We can save that argument for later. I feel that I must warn you, Fraülein. I am notorious for my difficult clues."

"I am aware of you being _notoriously difficult_, sir." She looked at him, almost as if she were challenging him to contradict her here, in front of his friends.

He closed the box holding the dragon, and slipped it into his coat pocket. "Well, rest assured that you _will_ find this game difficult, and I have no doubt in my mind that you will not succeed in out-smarting me. " Then he turned to Peggy. "However, this won´t be the prize for Elsa´s game. I will save it for a very special occasion. And I am counting on you, _Fraülein,_ to keep it a secret."

"Of course, Sir. Although it would help if I knew what that special occasion was." He glared at her. "I know, I know, you don´t have to tell me. _The Lord will show me in His own good time,_" she said, quoting the Reverend Mother.

"Well, seeing as how we've found almost everything imaginable, and yet haven't succeeded with out quest, do you have any suggestions?" he asked. He saw her eyeing the tiara again and added quickly, "any _good_ suggestions?"

Her eyes left the sparkling tiara and she scanned the contents of the trays once more. "How about that little anchor pin, Captain?" she asked, pointed to a pin which, like everything else, was studded with tiny, but furiously sparkling diamonds.

"Not very original, don´t you think?"

"Oh, but it's so pretty! And so rich in symbolism. Well grounded hope, A seaman´s last resort in stormy weather…" she quoted dramatically.

"What does it have to do with…" He then made a gesture of defeat.

_It reminds me of you_ the voice in her head cried. She felt the blush returning to her face. How many times would she blush in front of him today? She quickly thought of an answer to appease him. "It has diamonds in it, doesn't it? And the Baroness wants diamonds."

"Fine, let us end this torture. I´ll take the anchor. And that book as well."

Maria´s eye grew large and she felt her face flaming.

_Which book_? _Certainly not the one she had seen earlier._

"A rare first edition. I knew you would not be able to resist," Hans said laughing. He disappeared and returned with a leather bound book. Maria could not tear her gaze away from it.

----------------------------------------------------

Hans and Peggy Schneider watched from the door of their antique shop as the Georg and Maria walked away. They were still bickering, and the Captain was trying to lecture the governess about something she had said.

"That one certainly speaks her mind, doesn´t she?" Hans commented. "She reminds me of someone I know," he added, gazing at his wife., lovingly. "She is driving him absolutely crazy! I have been around the world with that man, and I have never, _ever_ seen him so flustered by anyone he ever commanded."

"She is not one of his sailors, Hans. She is a girl."

"Oh yes, and _that_ is the one thing he knows well."

"So you saw what I saw! Then I am _not _imagining things. Intriguing." Peggy said.

Hans shrugged. "I am not sure I like it. He is who he is, and this girl… "

"Social differences have nothing to do with it. He did not take his eyes off her, even when he was not looking at her."

"How is that even possible?" He turned to his wife shaking his head.

"It is. I used to do it with you all the time."

"Well, it hardly matters, doesn't it? It is none of our business anway."

"Yes, but how can you resist it? It is so deliciously _wicked_! I wonder if _they_ are aware of it. She _is_ very naïve, I doubt she has any idea of what is going on, the poor girl. There is no possible way that she is not disturbed by him, and he by her. That girl may know her prayer book by heart, but she does not know herself. Poor thing, she must be so confused. I wish I could help.

"Peggy, don´t even think of meddling this time!"

"And face the Captain´s wrath? No, I would not dream of it. Unless I have to – that girl just _can't_ become a nun – it would be a mockery to _nundom_." He rolled his eyes at his wife's horrible use of grammar. "As for the _Captain_ – I was never able to read his moods very well, so I cannot tell for sure."

"No one ever could read him, except for Agathe."

"And this little Fraülein, perhaps" she added.

He nodded. "I think he is in denial."

"And I think that things are really going to be interesting in Aigen this summer." She lay her head on her husband´s shoulder.

"And I used to think it was the quietest, most boring place in the world…"

"Hans?"

"Yes, darling?"

"Our Johann is not a philanderer, is he?"

"No, he is not. But he certainly does try!"

Arm in arm, the couple went back inside, laughing.

A/N: Thank you for reviewing! And - I will never tire of saying this - thanks Mellie for her practically perfect beta work.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler". It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins about one week before the ball. The green monster strikes again, as the Captain learns that Maria did have a life outside the Abbey.

Disclaimer: I absolutely do not own "The Sound of Music".

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"_**He that is not jealous is not in love." **_

_**St. Augustine.**_

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Leaving the outlandish antique shop and returning to the busy Getreidestrasse was like jumping between two very different worlds, and Maria had to blink a few times to readjust herself to the familiar surroundings. Then she took a large breath of fresh air, wondering, at the same time, if her face was ever going to return to its normal color. She chanced a glance at the book the Captain was holding and a picture of the book she had discovered flashed in her mind. With the image of the embracing couple still dancing on her mind, she could not help but wonder exactly _what_ the Captain had purchased.

"Fraülein, do you mind if we stopped at the Market for a moment? I would like to buy some flowers for the Baroness."

"Not at all, Sir."

They made it to the market in record time, with the Captain walking in his usual fast pace. He stopped when they arrived and looked around, a little unsure where to go. Finally, he spoke.

"I have not been here in quite a while. I am looking for a flower stall I always went to with the children's mother. There was this boy named…"

He was interrupted by the very same young man he was about to describe, running towards them. A handsome youth, probably around his governess's age, with silver blond hair. He was almost like a youthful male version of Fraülein Maria.

"Maria! Is that really you? I almost did not recognize you without your habit!" The young man hugged Maria in welcome.

"_Grüss Gott_, Werner!" she greeted cheerfully.

"I haven't seen you in months. Have you left the Abbey?"

"Yes and no. Not for good. I am – uh - on loan."

"_On loan_? To whom?" Maria cast the Captain a sideways glance. "Cap… Captain von Trapp!" The youth straightened. "It is an honor to have you here again. We have not seen you since the Baroness… since… I am terribly sorry for your loss, Sir!"

The Captain's face was a forbidding mask. "I see you know my governess quite well."

"Your governess? _Maria_?" He then looked at Maria. "Are you on loan to _him_?"

"Hm mm. Until September." The Captain became irritated at the word _September._ Was she having such a horrible time working for him? Why did she have to stress all the time the fact that it was only temporary, and at the same time sound perfectly happy about it?

_I wonder how many more times __we will have to tell this story today,_ Maria wondered. _We?_ She chastised herself. When did she begin thinking of the Captain in the terms of "_we"? What was about it that people found so odd about a postulant being a governess?__What is wrong with making a vow to dedicate your life to a higher purpose? Why so many people found it so hard to believe? _She made a mental note to tell that to the Reverend Mother, for her to think about the next time she decided to send a postulant _out into the world._

"Are you a _governess_? You?!" The boy looked at her incredulously.

"To seven children," she stated proudly, and braced herself for another well know reaction – one similar to her own when she first heard it.

The Captain couldn't help but notice the difference in how Fraülein Mariaand Elsa stated the number of children he had. Elsa always remarked the number of children he had as if sighing, "_seven children_" and taking on the weight of the world. The young woman seemed to say _seven_ as if it were only one – and not so much an obligation, as it was a pleasure. _Probably glad she has someone to climb trees with_ he thought, a smirk gracing his face.

The young man looked aghast.

"Seven?!"

_The next time I will tell the whole story _before_ anyone asks,_ Maria thought, making another mental note.

The Captain, frustrated with this young man and irritated at being ignored Remarked scathingly, "I should realize you had old acquaintances in town, Fraülein."

"Oh! I am so sorry, Captain. Werner's mother cooks for the convent when the nuns need some extra help. Sometimes there are just too many poor mouths to feed. He often comes along and he helps to rehearse the choir of postulants. He plays the violin beautifully…"

"How…" he searched for the right word, "convenient."

"Yes, very," she replied innocently, missing his sarcastic bite. "Which reminds me…" Maria turned to the boy. "Is your mother still angry at me? Is her hair finally growing back?"

The Captain couldn't help but smile at the young woman's innocence. After the story she had told him on the trip into town about how Maria had inadvertently helped a volunteer cook become separated from her hair. She had told him something about a spider… using her wimple as a fan… and unfortunately, fanning the flame of the stove right over the cook's head. Fortunately, the cook had been leaning over the stove, and only her hair was a victim of the unfortunate incident. He could only imagine how Maria had talked her way out of that one.

"Her hair is growing back quite nicely. I will tell her that you asked."

"Oh good!"

"But she still thinks you should be exorcized!" Maria laughed. Now, after telling the Captain about the incident, she could see the humor in it. She supposed she did look a little possessed at the time, dancing around the kitchen trying to avoid the spider, her wimple her only means of defense, and Werner's mother's head ablaze.

"Yes, well, now that you've _reassured_ my confidence in you taking care of my children, could we please hurry this along? I would like to get home sometime today." He said sarcastically.

"What exactly are you looking for, Captain von Trapp?" Werner asked, aware that he had been neglecting the best costumer he and his mother had ever had.

"I am not sure yet, Werner. I am not sure." He began silently looking at the display of flowers.

"Maria could help you if you let her. She is quite the expert in the meaning of flowers."

"_Fraülein_ Maria? Why am I not surprised?" Maria doubted that Werner caught the subtlety of the Captain's "_Fraülein_". Did he really resent the fact that Werner treated her with such familiarity?

"When I was growing up, my aunt took the language of flowers very seriously," she explained. "She taught me all she knew about it, and made sure I learned. _You never know when it will be useful to you_, she used to say."

"Mm." The Captain didn't seem too amused by this revelation. The Captain turned to Werner, and said briskly. "I will take some of that lavender over there."

"Captain – uh - permission to speak freely?" Maria looked at him questioningly.

"Denied." The irritation was evident in his voice.

"But Sir, I must…"

"Fraülein, when did anything I have to say actually stop you from doing or saying as you pleased?" Maria closed her eyes and counted to three, in order to control her temper. "My answer to your question hardly mattered. I have no doubt that you will speak your mind, whether it is right or not, now or later. I'm sure you will show me the error of my ways. And since you have my attention, I'm sure you will correct my _wayward_ thinking now."

_Very well, Captain, you asked for it._

"Lavender may not be the best choice for Baroness Schrader. Oh, they are beautiful, and smell just lovely, but…"

"To the point, Fraülein!" He was exasperated. She could never give a simple "yes or no" answer.

"They mean devotion Sir, but they also mean _mistrust_."

"Then I should give them to _you_, shouldn't I?" He fired back.

Maria let out a moan of protest, a little hurt by his biting comment. "Whatever your intentions are about the Baroness, Captain…"

"And they are none of your business." The fire in his eyes was evident. But somehow, Maria knew it wasn't anger it was something else. She assumed it was frustration from such a long outing with her. She hadn't thought that it would take quite so long to get to Salzburg, and her game of dress-up with Peggy hadn't helped the Captain maintain his busy schedule. And yet… he didn't seem frustrated, she couldn't pinpoint his emotion, but she knew somehow, it was her fault.

She shrugged, giving up. "Take these, instead," Maria said hurtfully, handling him a bouquet.

"_Daffodils_?" She caught him off guard with such a simple flower.

"Chivalry, respect, regard. Much more appropriate, don't you think?"

He was not at all sure it had been a calculated gesture - she was not sophisticated enough for that. He just stared at her, but he took the bouquet of daffodils from her hands. Had she casually, but so cleverly, thrown back at him the little insult he had directed to her when he said she should be the one receiving a bouquet of lavender, and not Elsa? Had she just returned _respect and regard_ to him in exchange for _mistrust_?

She made him feel like a knave, and not for the first time that day.

"Captain?" She noticed that he hadn't taken his eyes off her, that he had been studying her… almost as if he were trying to discern her thoughts.

"Forgive me, I - I did not mean to insult you, Fraülein."

"Insult me? When did you?" She was confused, was she so naïve that she didn't even know when she was being insulted?

"When I hinted that I mistrusted you… I don't." He was looking at her again, this time, straight into her eyes.

"Oh," was all she said, taken aback. The fire she had seen earlier was gone, replaced by something tender. She could hardly breathe… she couldn't remember anyone ever looking at her like that.

Sensing something between them, he immediately broke eye contact and looked down at the bouquet in his hand. "But never mind any of that. I am just - uh - having a hard time imagining the Baroness and _daffodils_ in the same room."

After breaking eye contact with the Captain, Maria needed something to distract her. The lavender caught her eye, and she leaned over it, taking in it's wonderful aroma. "Well, I can't imagine the Baroness with lavender either."

"I happen to like lavender myself," he informed.

"Are you giving _yourself_ these flowers, Captain?" His eyes narrowed dangerously. "They should please the lady who will receive them, and not you, Sir."

She did have a point. _Damn the woman, how can she find fault in everything I do?_ He thought. And yet – somehow, he wanted to please her. He wanted to show her that he could _be right one of these days_ as she had taunted him yesterday. "What if I add some lavender to the daffodils?"

She shook her head. "That could say _I respect you, but I don't trust you_. That is not good either is it?"

"Hmmmm. Carnations?" He named a flower randomly, just to see what fault she would come up with this time.

"Which color?"

He was surprised. "Does it matter?"

"It is a very important detail!" She said excitedly. Then asked, "Pink, yellow, red, stripped?"

"Yellow. She likes gold."

"I'm afraid not, Captain." Maria shook her head.

"Why?" He was surprised not to find any irritation from her denial of the carnations. What was it about this girl that could completely disarm him?

"Yellow carnations mean rejection and disdain. And if you add the lavender, since you are so adamant about it," she added exasperatedly, "you have rejection, disdain _and_ mistrust. Honestly, Captain, if I were the Baroness, I would throw the bouquet into your face. You are most definitely going in the wrong direction.

Werner shook his head and laughed, finally making his presence known again. "I told you she knew all about it, Captain!" Georg scowled at him, and decided to test Maria again.

"_Azaleas_?"

"Sir, I am sorry but we have none of those today," said Werner, but was immediately silenced by a typical von Trapp scowl.

"Now, that would be a very good choice." Maria spoke, now fully aware that he was just baiting her. "It means _take care of yourself for me_."

The Captain shook his head. "No, no, no. The Baroness can very well take care of herself, and I have no inclination to take care of her either." He looked at the colorful flowers surrounding them.

"_Orchids_?"

Maria rolled her eyes. "Captain, you have _seven_ children. Trust me, you, of all people, do not need to give _any woman_ orchids."

"Why not? Don't they symbolize beauty and refinement? Even I know that."

"Yes, but the Chinese use it as a symbol for many children, Sir. And by my count, sir, you have enough children to make most women happy."

A voice in his head wanted to know if she considered herself _most women_, but it was silenced by the other voice in his head screaming "_she's going to be a nun_". "I surrender, Fraülein. You tell me what to pick. It does not have to be a declaration of undying love, or express a wish to have a dozen more children. As long as it is not insulting to her, and that it does not carry any dangerous hidden messages. Just a token of gratitude."

_Which will be accompanied by an outrageously expensive __diamond and sapphire locket,_ Maria completed in thought.

"Do you have any camellias, Werner? Or yellow lilies?"

"Not today, I'm afraid. Wait, there are some red camellias here, I think."

"Yes, I'll take those," the Captain said quickly.

"No," Maria exclaimed, and then turned to him, and said theatrically. "_You're a flame in my heart?_"

He was a little taken aback. "I give up! You choose. Whatever it is, please don't let it be _pink_. No need to have Marta right under Elsa trying to look at the pretty pink flowers." he added with a smile. "And Fraülein, remind me never to bring _you_ along when buying flowers again. You make it too complicated."

She looked around the rainbow colored display of flowers.

"Red roses are out of the question too."

"Why?"

"Unless you want your _declaration of undying love_,Captain". She squinted, looking around her. Then she walked past him towards a more secluded corner of the stall, letting out a small cry of delight. "Here they are. I did not think you would have then, Werner."

"Oh, they came this morning. Shipped straight from Holland only last night. They are very rare. Very expensive."

"Would have what, Fraülein?" The Captain began walking towards her to investigate her discovery.

"Blue roses!" She turned to the Captain, picking up a bouquet. "That would be just perfect."

"Perfect? No harmless hidden meanings or insinuations?" He smiled as he asked her. He couldn't help but notice how blue _her_ eyes looked next to the roses.

She looked at him and told him earnestly. "They mean mystery. Or attaining the impossible." She pressed the bouquet to her nose, and closed her eyes as she smelled the foreign fragrance. He noted the calmness that graced her features, and realized it was the first time today he had seen her so relaxed.

"Perfect indeed," he echoed, pensively. Not necessarily for the Baroness, but perfect nonetheless.

---

A/N: Thank you Mellie D. for helping me keep this story together.

I love your reviews, so please keep them coming! My very special thanks to TrapperII, for her encouraging feedback.


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler".__ It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins about one week before the ball. _

_Disclaimer: I absolutely do not own "The Sound of Music"._

---

"_**Jealousy is the great exaggerator." **_

_**Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller, The Conspiracy of Fiesco, 1783**_

---

"For a nun in training, you do lead a very colorful social life!" The Captain spat, as soon as they were back in the car. He slammed his door, making her wince. "Hold on to this for me, will you?" he said, handling her the book he had bought at Hans and Peggy´s shop to her lap. The blue roses he placed carefully on the back seat of the car.

_He cares more about the book than he does about the roses,_ she thought. _Otherwise, he would have me holding the fragile blue flowers, and would simply have thrown the book to the back seat. What is it with that book?_ She thought, staring at the brown, leather bound volume for a moment. 

Her fingers burned, and she felt tempted to look inside. Her conscience warned: _remember what you saw when you disobeyed his orders the last time?_ The memory was enough to warm her cheeks again. She certainly could not allow that same situation to repeat itself _now. _She was, once more, alone with him in the car and there would be no place to hide from him.

_Well, I__ will worry about it later. _But she _would_ worry about it, the cool leather making her fingers itch to open the book. In the meantime, if her employer wanted _another_ fight, he would get one.

"Well, Sir, forgive me for being repetitious, but as I said earlier– more than once, in fact - we do not spend all our time in contemplation at the Abbey. The nuns are cloistered, but the postulants and the novices work. And while we work, _we meet people_. I would not call that a social life. It just comes naturally." He said nothing, and she continued her chatter, trying to make her point. "Take you, for instance, Captain. I refuse to believe that while traveling all over the world, you have never met any nice young women."

The Captain thought for a moment about some of the _nice young women_ he had met before his marriage – and decided against making any specific comments. The little Fraülein had blushed enough for one day. "Women are not allowed in submarines, Fraülein, and for a good reason!"

"_Why_?" she asked, exasperated.

_That is all __I need – a _feminist _nun, _He thought He kept his eyes on the road, and gripped the steering wheel tightly."Don´t try to change the subject, Fraülein. The undeniable fact is… that the little… fiddle player was…" He searched for the right words.

"Captain, he's not…" She looked at him expectantly. He cut her off.

"Well, he was _flirting_ with you." He couldn't look at her. He was approaching the turn in the road that he had taken earlier today. The one on which he had gotten to know a little more about Maria, and had lengthened their trip to Salzburg. He considered his options as she gave him yet another dressing down today.

Her eyes grew larger. How could the Captain think such a thing? "He was not! And he is a violinist, not merely a… _fiddle player_. A very accomplished musician, I might add, who has just been awarded a scholarship to the…"

"He was _flirting_." He spoke markedly, which was also a sign that he was in a dangerous mood. _Curious man, this sea captain_, she thought. _If he speaks at normal speed, all is fine, but if he speaks as fast as lightining, or distinctly, as he just did, then brace yourself for what is to come!_ The problem was that, with Maria, he always seemed to speak at those dangerous speeds.

"He was just being nice to me. He is a very sweet boy." She sounded a bit dejected, almost as if he had offended her. _Well, she needs to know the truth, _he thought.

"Oh, is he?" He chanced a glance over at her. She had such passion in her eyes. Not passion for the young man, that was obvious, even to him. She continued to speak and he realized what he was seeing in her eyes; it was a passion for him to understand _her.__And I do want to understand her,_ the little voice in his head cried. The little voice must have been the navigator of the car, because as he looked at her, he turned onto the same winding road he had taken earlier that day. Prolonging their trip once more… prolonging his time away from Elsa, away from the children, and away from prying eyes.

"Captain, Werner works in the market all day selling flowers and still helps his mother on weekends, and attends music school at night. He does not have time for _flirting_. And if he did, he would not waste it on _me_. He knows I am dedicated to a higher purpose in life."

He did not have to be told about young Werner´s merits. He knew the boy quite well – or better, Agathe knew him. One day they had been walking in downtown Salzburg, and had heard him play the violin. Agathe, who also played the instrument, was immediately drawn to the sound. Ten-year-old Werner Meyer was playing, while his mother sold flowers at the market. The sight tugged at Agathe´s tender heart, but so the boy´s magnificent music. 

"_Listen to him, Georg,_" she had said. "_Even if I practice all days for the next 20 years, I won´t be able to play like that_. _And he is just a little boy!_"

They became the Werner´s sponsors – although the boy himself did not know that – and he was awarded a scholarship to one of the most prestigious of all Salzburg´s music schools. He was a fine young man, with a bright future. But that did not give him the right too…

"He does not need 'time' necessarily Fraülein, all he requires is the opportunity," he said briskly, only to interrupt his own thoughts. "Which he seized in grand fashion, by the way. He did _not_ have to hug you, did he?"

"Captain, I am going to be a _nun_, and there is nothing or _no one_ with the power to stray me from that path. Not Werner Meyer, not Frau Schneider, not her poor philandering son, whatever his name is" she said exasperatedly, then added with a huff, "and least of all _you_!" Tears were threatening her eyes. Unwilling to let the Captain see that she was upset, she turned her attention to the countryside. Feeling them beginning to spill down her cheeks, she turned her back squarely to him, and hastily wiped them away. She would _not_ let him see her cry.

_Me?_ Why would she name _me_ in the list of suitors? He fought hard not to press the brakes firmly at her statement. He looked at her, daring her to argue with him. "And why should _I_ of all people want you to stray you from your path?" He asked irritably. "If you want to be a nun, then _be a nun_. As long as it does not interfere with your work with my children." She said nothing. He knew her well enough to tell that she was angry. Her tone of voice said as much – she was nearly been yelling at him. "You certainly know what you want from life, don´t you?" he asked, thinking that, maybe, he had pushed her too far.

"Yes, I do." Her tone was still angry, but with a touch of sadness. He saw her wipe furiously at her face, and realized that she must have been crying. _I've upset her more than I thought._ He continued to glance at her, all the while she kept her attention to the hills. He gave her a few moments to compose herself, and when he felt she was ready, he continued their conversation, this time gently, as if in apology.

"If you know what you want out of life, then I suggest you hold on to that. It is a precious gift. Most of us poor souls are completely lost."

She was startled by his soft tone, and she turned to look at him. "Even you, Captain?"

He looked her straight in the eye and answered pensively, "More than you know," He kept her gaze for a moment longer, and then turned his eyes back to the road. After a few moments of silence and berating himself for making her cry, he felt as if he needed to justify his actions. Whether it was justifying them to her or himself, he wasn't sure. "Fraülein, please try to understand that you are under my care and protection. I gave the Mother Abbess my word that I would keep you from any harm. If I seem a bit…"

"Unreasonable?"

He smirked. "I was going to say_ worried._"

She let out a small chuckle and he continued. "The Mother Abbess is a formidable woman. I don't wish to have her angry at me. If Sister Berthe has you kiss the floor when you have a disagreement, I would hate to see what the Reverend Mother would do to me if I let anything happen to you." He turned to her and gave her a small smile, then looked back at the road.

Werner Meyer harming her? The thought was ludicrous to Maria. Even more ludicrous was the idea of _flirting_ with him. It was the furthest thing from her mind. She had never thought of the boy as anything other than a friend, and she knew that the feeling was reciprocal, and, more than that, she could prove it. She was tempted to tell the Captain about Werner´s girlfriend, who lived in Hallein, and who he was planning to marry as soon as he graduated from the music school. However, she knew the Captain´s moods well enough now to conclude that, if she gave him that small piece of information, he would start another argument. _Let him think whatever he wishes to think,_ she thought. _One year from now he will hardly remember my name._

The thought saddened her. Turning her head, she found herself studying him for the second time that day. Would he really dismiss her so easily from his mind that he wouldn't remember her name? And once she became a nun, would she really never see the children again? She felt a little part of her die inside at that thought. Although they had only spent a few months together, the children meant so much to hear. And she had so much more to teach them, to teach _him_ how to be a father. He needed to be a father to his children, but _not_ a father to her. She wasn't his responsibility, and he needed to know that. "Oh, but I can take very good care of myself, Captain. I´ve been doing that all my life."

That silenced him – at least for a while. Her mind could now occupy itself with other matters.

Maria continued to look at him for a few moments, then remembering their conversation from earlier in the day realized she needed to look at something else. No, he didn't look at all like a sea captain, and yet… he looked very much in command. Maria stared down at her own hands, only then realizing that they were clutching the book so hard that her knuckles were white. She relaxed, but not completely. 

_The book._

She could not help but wonder if it was anything like the book she had seen in the antique shop. The Captain wondering why she had been silent for so long looked over and noticed the direction of her gaze. He could very clearly read her thoughts.

"Go on," he taunted softly. "Open it! You are dying to do it, so just – do it!"

She looked up sharply. "You told me specifically not to, Sir."

"But you still could not resist taking a peek, could you?" Her face went beet red. "Never mind, that should teach you to trust my better judgment now and then. Yes, Fraülein, it appears that sometimes I _ can_ be right. " He looked at her again, taking the book from her lap, his hand grazing hers in the process. He kept one eye on the road and the other on the book. A smile graced his lips as he turned it over and handed it to her. "This one is quite harmless, I assure you. Go on, satisfy your curiosity. You won´t get burned this time."

She hesitantly opened the leather bound book. Her eyes widened. 

"_Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea_, by Jules Verne," she said in wonder. The very first _big _book she had read, her favorite as a child.

"It is a rare first edition. I have been looking for it for years. If you wonder why I went to Hans and Peggy today, it was to fetch this book, and not to buy Elsa´s diamonds. If the outing had only been for her treasure, I would have gone to somewhere more… conventional."

Maria´s eyes looked at the opening lines.

"_The year 1866 was signalised by a remarkable incident, a mysterious and puzzling phenomenon, which doubtless no one has yet forgotten._"

The Captain continued with his own reminiscences. "You know, it was reading this book that made me realize I wanted to command submarines. Have you read it?"

"Oh yes, but… a long time ago, when I was a little girl." Her eyes were still glued to the pages, taking extra care with them.

"Did you like it?"

"Oh yes. This one, and _The Mystery Island_ were my favorites."

"Odd choices for a little girl. I thought you were more… the fairy tale type."

She looked up at him and smiled. "I was a very odd little girl."

He returned her smile with a genuine one of his own. The drive to the villa continued in silence, as they were both lost in their memories - his of the dream to be a submarine captain, and hers of wanting to marry one.

---

_A/N: As usual, Mellie´s beta work was essential to make this story what it is now. Thank you, Mellie! And to all of you, reviewers, especially to TrapperII and Maria´s Georg for their comments._


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler".__ It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins about one week before the ball. _

_It is __Maria's turn to feel a little jealous…_

_Thanks to Mellie D. for being both a beta and co-author of this chapter! _

_Disclaimer: I absolutely do not own "The Sound of Music"._

_**He who wishes to be obeyed must know how to command.**__**  
**_

_**Niccolo Machiavelli**_

_Three days later…_

The players assembled at the gazebo - Baron and Baroness Eberfeld, the British Ambassador and his wife, one of Georg´s professors from the University of Vienna and, of course, Baroness Schraeder and Max Detweiller. For the first time in four years, another von Trapp treasure hunt was about to begin.

There were twelve clues in all. The first five clues were different for each player and each subsequent clue after the initial five were the same for each player. The clue was usually a riddle, which somehow pointed to a location on the grounds of the Trapp villa, where the following clue would be found, and so on. Only three rooms in the house were not to be entered – the master bedroom, the Captain's study and the attic. Everywhere else was part of the game, and could be fully and freely investigated.

Marta and Gretl were the only ones playing as a double, because of their age. They were also supervised by Maria, if for no other reason than because they needed someone to read the clues for them. However, even though there was a good reason for her to be among the guests, and even though she was not taking direct part in the game, Maria was not comfortable in her participation. She felt the guests' curious stares –and she attested it to the fact that they knew she was only the governess. 

Last night had proven that to her in spades. The guests had been invited to dinner. She and the children had dressed for the occasion, but she had been quickly told by the Baroness that she would be dining with the "_other help_" that evening. Poor Gretl hadn't understood why Maria couldn't eat dinner with them, like she had every other night prior. Maria had explained to her that, with the guests, there simply wouldn't be enough room for both her, Baron and Baroness Eberfeld, the Ambassador and his wife, the Professor, the Baroness, Uncle Max, her father and all of her siblings. Although the dining hall could easily seat twenty, only fifteen places had been set, and the Baroness had expressed her disproval of Maria eating with the family. 

Maria had quickly left the dining room not wanting everyone to see the flame of embarrassment on her cheeks. She, like Gretl, had simply assumed she would be dining with the family. She still felt that same awkwardness today – that she didn't belong with the group, and the Baroness was making that evident to the guests. She heard the Baroness explain on more than one occasion that afternoon that she was _just the governess_ who would be helping the little ones so that they would be able to participate. _Captain's orders._

As they stood in the gazebo awaiting the arrival of the Captain with the clues, Maria had some last minute helpful advice from Friedrich. "If you are going to help them, Fraülein… and they _will_ need your help – the clues are not as hard as they seem. The answer is _usually_ in the question."

"_Usually?_" Maria asked.

"I would not listen to him if I were you, Fraülein," advised Louisa. "You never know what father may come up with. Sometimes the answer is in the answer…"

_The answer is in the answer?_ Maria wondered what kind of mind games the Captain was playing with her already. 

Hearing her sibling's advice, Lies chimed in, "Sometimes not even in the answer – sometimes you just have to… read his mind…"

Maria placed her hand on her head, in her typical gesture of despair. _How could he be so frustrating?_ The Captain had taunted her that it would be difficult – but for some reason she had assumed he meant finding the clues, not deciphering them. _How is one supposed to know an answer from a question if the answer is in the question?_ Noticing the Captain approaching, she tried to remember what the children were saying. 

_Answers are in the questions, Answers are in the Answers, and Answers are neither questions nor answers, they're mind games._

When the envelopes were distributed by the Captain, there were exclamations of every kind as they were read. Some laughed, some were horrified, and some were utterly puzzled. 

Maria reacted no differently – as she read the girls first clue and let out a moan of pure frustration. The clue was in _French_!

"Oh Captain!" Maria sighed.

"Anything wrong, Fraülein?" he spoke behind her. Her answer was to wave the paper where the clue was written in his bold calligraphy. "Allow me, please."

He took the clue from her hands. "Hmmm – you were lucky; this is by far the easiest one. Do not expect the next ones to be that simple!" He returned her the clue, and then, without a word, he left the gazebo.

_This is impossible,_ Maria thought, fuming. Did he know that his daughters were five and seven years old? Did it ever occur to him that _some people did _not_ speak French? _Did he need to make things so difficult for them, even with her helping? She looked at the note and conceded that she would not be much help if the next clues were similar to this one.

"What does it say Fraülein Maria?" asked Gretl, trying to peek at the paper she was holding.

"It's – uh – it's _French_! I don't speak French! I never could. I'm afraid I cannot help you with this one." She had always thought that it was a beautiful language. She had the required lessons in school, but somehow she could never manage the pronunciation, which earned her frequent reprimands from her teacher. Because of that, she developed a particular dislike for the study of that language.

"Read it for us, please," asked Marta.

"Do you think you can do anything with it?" Maria looked at her two little companions.

"We can try!" Gretl was so excited about the treasure hunt, that Maria could deny her nothing. 

Maria began to read, her pronunciation atrocious. "_À… la… cla... claire... font..."_

Suddenly, a small voice next to her began reciting the same words she was trying to read, her pronunciation flawless:

"_À la claire fontaine,  
M'en allant promener  
J'ai trouvé l'eau si belle  
Que je m'y suis baigné_

Il y a longtemps que je t'aime  
Jamais je ne t'oublierai

Sous les feuilles d'un chêne,  
Je me suis fait sécher  
Sur la plus haute branche,  
Un rossignol chantait."_  
_

"Marta, you speak French!" Maria stared at the seven year old, absolutely aghast. The girl nodded proudly. "But you are so _little_!" 

Gretl giggled. "They all do, Fraülein"

She looked at the smallest one, puzzled. "Ehm – _they?"_

"Liesl, Friedrich, Louisa, Brigitta and Kurt," recited Gretl. "And father, of course."

"You too, Gretl?"

"She is still learning, Fraülein," answered Marta.

"But Marta is the best," her sister interrupted. "She is even better than Liesl." Marta nodded proudly. "She is teaching me."

_Why am I so surprised,_ Maria thought? The von Trapp children came from two very aristocratic families. Certainly French was a very important part of their education, as well as other languages. She remembered that Friedrich told her that the Captain spoke _a dozen_ languages. At the time, she had thought the boy was exaggerating his father's praises, but after today's revelation, she was no longer sure. After learning that the man could fly a plane, she would believe anything that she was told about him.

"Very well, then Marta. Can you translate it?"

Maria wrote the words down, while Marta translated. The result was a bit strange, but at least she could now understand the words.

_At the clear fountain,  
While I was strolling by,  
I found the water so nice  
That I went in to bathe.  
_

_So long I've been loving you,  
I will never forget you._

Under an oak tree,  
I dried myself.  
On the highest branch,  
A nightingale was singing.  


"Hummmm…" Gretl said. "Is this supposed to mean anything? What do we do with this, Fraülein?" 

"I think that it to direct us to a place on the grounds where we will find the next clue. Come on, what place do these words remind you of?" 

"We could look for a fountain, an oak tree, nightingales…" Marta said.

"But we have no fountains here," said Gretl.

"_I found the water so nice that I went in to bathe,_" Maria quoted. 

"I know, I know - the lake!" exclaimed Marta, looking towards the water.

"Fraülein, is there an oak tree by the lake. What does an oak look like?" Gretl was becoming more excited as they figured out the first clue.

"There are many oak trees bordering the lake. It can't… What is it, Marta?" The little girl was tugging at her skirt, trying hard to catch her attention.

"It must be the one with the heart."

"Yes," Gretl agreed.

"What are you girls talking about?"

"Someone drew a heart in the trunk of a tree. A heart and an arrow."

"Father says that uncle Max did it as a joke, before he married mother," Marta informed them. 

_So long I've been loving you,  
I will never forget you._

It had to be right!

"It is not far away. It is right there," Gretl said, pointing to a group of trees bordering the lake, not too far from the gazebo.

"Let's go and find it!" exclaimed Maria, and they were off. 

_They are as bright as their father!_ Maria thought, as she followed the girls to the heart tree, as they called it. Well, she should have known that, shouldn't she? After all, their father man was terribly intelligent, fiercely loyal, and wickedly handsome. _Wickedly handsome?_ She had already acknowledged the fact that he was handsome, but _wickedly _handsome? She chastised herself for such improper thoughts.

Engraved in the tree trunk was a heart, crossed by an arrow. It was funny that she never noticed that before. High above, hanging from a branch, there was a blue piece of paper – their clue.

"We found it!" The girls yelled, jumping up and down. They began dancing around the tree. 

Maria looked up, puzzled. How on earth had the Captain managed to hang that piece of paper up there? Did he know how to climb trees as well? Was it another one of his hidden talents, as Herr Detweiler liked to say? She could not help but to be amused by the image of the ever so formal and impeccably dressed Captain climbing the oak tree. Then wondered if he had known that it would be one of his children who would have this clue and _not_ one of his houseguests. She looked at the girls, who were now walking around the tree, studying the best way to climb it. Maria was sorely tempted to climb it herself, but with the grounds full of people, she didn't want to embarrass herself or Georg von Trapp. _Captain von Trapp_ her mind screamed correcting her. Seeing Marta about to climb the tree, she was pulled away from her thoughts.

"No, no, no," Maria warned. "Marta, Gretl, don´t try to go after it. It is too high up; I need to find us a ladder. I think there is one by the house. You wait here while I fetch it," she said, walking away. 

_Georg von Trapp?_ She chastised herself for her mental slip of using his name. Why had she called him that? She had _never_ used it before, so why now? Why today? She supposed it was because of their little trip earlier in the week. On their return trip home he had appeased her curiosity and let her discover what book he had purchased. After a while, he had regaled her with stories of his childhood and his desire to be a submarine Captain. His stories had made him seem almost human, almost… likeable.

As she approached the gazebo, she noted that the Captain and Baroness were walking in her direction. They were strolling hand-in-hand in the garden, apparently unaware that they were being watched. 

Caught in her own thoughts, she had not realized that she was now very close to them – although they had not seen her yet. To keep herself from being seen, she hid behind a tree, with every intention of staying there until it was safe to leave unnoticed. She glanced at her young charges, and noted that they were standing by the tree, looking up at the note high above the ground. She returned her attention to the strolling couple. She was horrified when she realized that she could also hear them. What could she do? If she moved a muscle, she would be seen, and that would be embarrassing for all of them, most of all to her. She had no intention of eavesdropping, but there was no way she could help it.

"But _darling_!" Elsa stopped their stroll, turning to Georg with her plea.

"Elsa, do be patient. You know why I brought you here. I let you turn my house upside down with treasure hunts and lavish parties for a reason."

"I know. But have you ever thought what is it like for me? All this uncertainty, this _waiting_? There is a limit to what a woman can take, even a woman like me. When my husband died, I vowed I would _never_ be alone and unhappy again, and now..."

"When my wife died, I have vowed never to _marry_ again."

She wove her arm through his and continued their stroll. "I guessed as much. It is difficult for any woman, you know, to compete with a ghost." 

"On her deathbed, she wanted me to promise her just the contrary – that I would remarry one day, for the sake of the children, and for my sake. But I… I couldn't do it. It was the very last thing she asked of me, and I refused her. I don't think I will ever be able to forgive myself."

She playfully nudged him with her shoulder. "It is never late to change that, you know?"

"Elsa... I know, and that is why I am reconsidering it. I know it what is expected of me, that it is the right thing to do."

"For the children?" She dreaded his answer. Was he wanting to marry her just so that the children would have a new mother?

"And for _me_!" He stopped their forward progress, within a few feet of the tree Maria was hiding behind. He took both of Elsa's hands in his.

"Then what is stopping you?"

"_I don't know,_" he whispered.

The baroness's tone became lower, almost husky. "Then tell me what can I do to change your mind?"

There was a short silence during which Maria imagined, with an inexplicably dull ache in her heart, that they were kissing. Since they would be distracted, she felt safe enough to leave her hiding place. Stealing a glance around the tree, she saw that the Baroness was playfully tugging the Captain's tie, a simple gesture that, to Maria, appeared as excruciatingly intimate. 

Maria bit her lip to prevent a low moan of indignation from escaping. The Baroness wiping away lipstick from the Captain's face had just confirmed her suspicions. 

_How dare he be so…__ so… chauvinistic?_ She thought. 

Only three days ago he was insinuating that half of the male population in Salzburg was flirting with _her_, when all she did was to be nice and talk to an old friend. Three days ago, he had taken her to that heathen place owned by a pirate with an eye patch and she had seen those books. She had prayed for forgiveness repeatedly that night, asking God to forgive her, and to forgive Peggy and Hans for indulging in such a _unique_ life because they did seem like nice, good people. She had prayed that God wouldn't smite her for admiring the Captain on their trip, or for thinking of what fanciful lands the little dragon locket had come from. She had asked God to bless Werner in his studies – and to forgive the Captain for his quick judgments. And now here he was, in the garden in full view of his children, with a tall blonde _Baroness_ all wrapped around him. And yet, he had dared to question her religious vocation, to question the path she had chosen for herself? He had been so harsh in his comments that he had forced her to furiously wipe away her tears in the car.

_And why on earth do I feel like crying again _now? But she would not let it happen, he would never, ever see her tears again.

Suddenly, Maria noticed that the couple was no longer embracing. Baroness Schrader was looking straight at her, and the Captain was looking out towards the water. Only then did Gretel's cries made their way into her consciousness.

Maria turned her head to see what the Captain was looking at.

"Gretl!" she yelled, seeing the girl on the ground, next to the tree, and running towards her. The Captain wasn't far behind her.

"I told her to wait, Fraülein, I really did, but she is so stubborn!" Marta yelled as she knelt next to her sister.

"I am not," said Gretl crying.

As Maria approached she began bombarding the little girl with questions. "Are you all right, darling? Oh, of course you are not, but I told you to wait for me to bring the ladder, didn't I? Where does it hurt? Did you hit your head? Are you…" She knelt next to the youngest von Trapp.

"I'll take care of that, Fraülein." said the Captain, kneeling on the other side of his daughter. He obviously had been trained to handle basic medical emergencies, Maria thought, judging by the way he felt his daughter's arms and legs for broken bones. Much to everyone's relief, all Gretl suffered from was shock and a scraped knee.

"Dear heavens, what happened here?" asked the Baroness, arriving some time later, since her high heels forbid her to run. "Oh Georg, I told you it would not be a good idea to allow the little ones to play. Look at what happened! That is terrible."

The Captain playfully patted Gretel's head. "She'll be fine, it is just a scrapped knee."

"But it hurts," Gretl protested.

The Captain looked over to Maria, accusingly.

"Fraülein, _what happened_ here?" He stood up enraged at the young woman's ineptitude.

"Well, I – I… uh… I… I was… I did not see… I told her not to… _I don't know_!"

"You obviously saw many things, except for my youngest daughter _falling from a tree_!" Maria gasped – did he know she had been watching them? "You were supposed to stay with them. You are employed as their _governess_ and if you can't do your job properly, then I will find someone who can!" 

"Captain, I was just getting…"

"Are you finally able to understand why I do not want my children climbing any blasted trees!" He looked at her daring her to contradict him.

Maria was absolutely dumbfounded at his lack of comprehension. "Then you should _not_ have placed one of your blasted clues up in a tree," she fired back, angrily. 

The Captain was rendered speechless for a moment. He stood towering over his daughter and his stubborn governess and he was absolutely seething. How _dare_ she question him? The Baroness took a step back, looking absolutely scandalized by what was, in her opinion, the governess' appalling behavior.

The pregnant pause was interrupted by the little girl next to Maria. "I cannot play anymore," said Gretl. "My knee hurts!"

Maria directed her full attention to the little one. Her face and tone of voice immediately softened. "It's all right, darling. Come, let us go inside, and I'll take care of it." The both stood, Maria helping Gretl.

"Will it hurt?" Gretl looked up to Maria with large eyes.

"Well, if it does, I'll let you play with my guitar for a while, how is that?" Maria playfully nudged the little girl, and Gretl giggled. Maria took her answer as a yes.

_Damn the woman, can I do _nothing_right?_ Unwilling to acknowledge that he was entirely at fault, he felt compelled to exert his authority. "Fraülein, you stay with her until the game is over."

"Of course, Captain," Maria answered meekly, feeling sorry for another angry outburst. She couldn't bring herself to look at him. _I was _not_ wrong_ her conscience cried. _But you didn't have to yell_ said another little voice.

"What about me, father?" asked Marta. "I can't play alone."

The Captain thought for a moment. "I'll take you to Liesl, Marta. You can stay with her from now on." Seeing his daughter and governess walk towards the house, he called out, "And you, Fraülein…"

"Yes, Captain?" She turned, her eyes seeking his. She needed his reassurance that everything would be all right. She didn't get it, instead she received a reprimand. 

"I want to see you in my study after this ridiculous game is over."

_A/N:_

"_À la claire fontaine" is a traditional French children's song. The translation was obtained online._

_Thank you __all those of you that wrote reviews so far. This story has been a challenge to me, and I am happy to hear your opinion about it._


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler". It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins about one week before the ball.

Once more, my beta was a virtual co-author in this and in the upcoming chapters. Thank you Mellie D.!

Disclaimer: I absolutely do not own "The Sound of Music".

_**If love is the treasure, laughter is the key.**__**  
**_

**_Yakov Smirnoff_**

"_I want to see you in my study after this ridiculous game is over."_

Maria had to admit she may have gone too far with running her mouth this time. He hadn't been this mad at her since the day the boat tipped over, and not completely without reason, she had to concede. She was supposed to watch the little ones and she had failed to do it, all because she had been distracted - by _him_. She shuddered to think what could have happened to Gretl, if the fall had been a serious one, something much more than a scraped knee.

She was doomed. There was no way he would forgive her this time, in spite of everything she had done to help the children. In fact, she was not sure she could forgive herself. She would have to prepare herself for what was about to come.. He would bellow with rage, pointing out everything she had done wrong since the day she first stepped into his house, ending with her final act of defiance earlier that afternoon. Then he would make her walk the plank. No sea in Salzburg? No ships? It did not matter. He would find one and place it in the middle of the lake behind the villa – if only to make it possible for her to walk the plank. And he would throw some sharks in the lake as well, to assure the punishment was fitting enough.

While bandaging Gretl´s knee, she could not avoid thinking about his veiled threat. Would he really send her away? And before September? Obviously he was preparing to marry the Baroness, but did he really want her out of the house before he was married? She doubted that the Baroness intended to take the children with the on their honeymoon. Gretl let out a small sniffle, bringing Maria back to the present. The little one behaved just like the lady she would one day become – except for when Maria had to clean her scraped knee, she did not cry or whine at all. Certainly it was the promise that Maria made, to let her play with her guitar.

"There," Maria said, when she finished dressing Gretl´s knee. "That was not bad at all, was it?"

"I am sorry I made father mad at you," said the little girl.

_Your father is always mad at me lately,_ Maria thought, but naturally she could not say that to Gretl. "Well, he did have a reason. I was supposed to keep an eye on you and I did not."

"But you told me _not_ to climb the tree and I did." The young girl looked up to her governess, asking for forgiveness with her eyes.

"Then I think we are both wrong, aren't we?" Maria smiled down at her young charge.

"Father yelled at you." Maria thought _that's stating the obvious._

"And I yelled back – which was not the right thing to do either."

"No one _ever_ yells at father," said Gretl proudly.

"Who says that?" Maria couldn't believe that no one had ever stood up to him.

"Everybody does. He is the Captain. He is the one who does the yelling. Everyone is afraid of him."

_No wonder he is not used to it,_ Maria thought.

"You aren't, are you?"

"I am not what, darling?"

"Afraid of father."

How could such an innocent question give Maria such butterflies? _Yes,_ she felt tempted to say. But not for the reasons Gretl had in her child's mind. Not because of the scowling and the yelling – but because of _him._

_Dear God, what am I afraid of?_

"What?"

"Ehrm - Never mind"

"Is he sending you away, back to the Abbey?"

Maria bit her lower lip, but then decided that the best thing was to be as honest as possible with Gretl. "Gretl, you know I will have to leave one day, don't you?"

"I don't think I like the Abbey very much, Fraülein Maria. I don't want you to go back there."

"Oh Gretl… Let us not think about it now, all right? Don't you want to go outside to find out which one of your brothers and sisters will find that treasure?" Gretl nodded. "Good," Maria exclaimed, getting up and taking the girl's hand.

Sitting on stairs of the terrace with Gretl, Maria watched the guests that were crossing grounds, chasing their own clues. The British Ambassador and his wife were reciting Latin declinations while attempting to solve one of the Captain's enigmas. Baroness Eberfeld was arguing with the professor about an obscure medieval German poem. Suddenly, Maria and Gretl were surrounded by all the other children, who sat down on the steps surrounding them.

"Why the sad faces?" Maria asked. "Why aren't you playing anymore?"

"We are officially _stuck_, Fraülein," Friedrich informed her as he sat down on the step next below her.

"All of you?" They nodded, all dejectedly taking seats around her. "Surely, you're joking."

"No, Fraülein. Father made the first few clues easy." Brigitta said.

"Then they got much harder," chimed in Kurt.

"And now, we're all absolutely stumped!" Louisa complained.

"It seems _everybody_ is stuck. Even Professor Schweiger, who teaches Ancient Naval History in the University of Vienna! Someone _has_ to win this!" Liesl exclaimed.

"We have a time limit now. The Baroness said that if no one finds it in the next hour, the game will be over. No rules anymore, we can work together if we want to," Fredrich informed Maria.

Maria turned towards him. "What does your father say about that?"

"He is just happy with himself because his clues are impossible to solve," said Louisa, throwing a small rock. "But someone has to find it. I don't want_ her_ to keep the prize, whatever that is."

"Who said that the Baroness will keep it?" asked Gretl.

"Nobody, but of course she will want to. It has _diamonds_ in it," the girl sneered. "I am sure father will give it to her."

"Does it really have diamonds, Fraülein Maria?" Marta asked. "You saw it, didn't you?"

Maria remembered the tiny anchor pin with sparkling gems that caught her attention simply because it reminded her of a sea captain – and not just any sea captain. "Tiny ones. But yes, they are diamonds," she replied.

Next to her, Brigitta whispered. "We should not give up yet, should we, Fraülein Maria?"

Maria was not the type who would give up anything too easily. "No, not yet. There simply must be an answer to the question."

"It's not even a question" Kurt complained.

"Then an answer in the answer?" Maria suggested.

"I don't think so Fraülein." Marta said.

_Then reading the Captain's mind?_ She thought. "Well, why don't we read this again?"

"_We_?" asked Brigitta, smiling. "Do you think you could help us?"

"Brigitta, I don't think she is supposed to help us!" Louisa warned.

Brigitta turned to her sister. "You just said that there are no rules anymore. And one of us has to win, Louisa."

"She is right," said Liesl. "Have you forgotten how much we wanted to outsmart father? If we can do that, even with a little help…"

"I wanted to be the one who would outsmart him," Louisa moaned. "Alone!"

"What about wanting Fraülein Maria on your team?" Kurt taunted his sister.

Louisa smiled mischievously. That did not sound at all like a bad idea. Fraülein Maria giving their father a dose of his own medicine…

"Children, I am not allowed to play, remember?"

Friedrich agreed. "She is right, the Baroness would have her head for this."

"Forget the Baroness," said Brigitta. "Father owns the game, and I am sure he would not mind that Fraülein Maria helped us."

_Oh, Brigitta, I think your father would mind very much,_ Maria thought.

"Well, I am not sure I could play, but no one said I could not help! In fact, that was what I was assigned to do – help Marta and Gretl. And that is what I will do now. Marta, your clue, if you please." She said, reaching for the blue piece of paper from the girl.

"I told you _she_ would be the only one able to outsmart him!" Kurt exclaimed.

"If you play my way, maybe you will _all_ win. How does that sound?" They voiced their agreement in unison. Maria knew that she was risking facing his anger once more, but she would gladly do it for the sake of the children.

Brigitta pointed to the small piece of paper in Maria's hand. "See the little anchor there? It means that the next one is the last clue."

"I see. You children came too far to give up _now_. Let me see what I can do."

She looked at the clue. There were only two words written on the paper, in capital letters:

_INNOVATIVE SIR_

_Well, his clues have certainly been _innovative,_ but what does he mean by this?_ It did not make any sense, but Captain von Trapp always made sense, even when he was being cryptic.

"Any ideas?" Maria asked, sounding very discouraged.

"None Fraülein."

"And if the Professor did not get this one, how could we?" Maria was discouraged for the second time that day.

"Because the Professor does not know father and we do – well, at least you do." Kurt informed her. She tried to concentrate.

"_Innovative Sir, Innovative Sir, Innovative Sir,"_ she thought, without realizing she was saying the words aloud.

"Fraülein?" Louisa asked, amused.

"I know!!" Maria spoke aloud – louder than she intended to, because several of the guests turned to look at her. Then she looked at all the people staring at her. "I'm sorry," she mumbled. Then she whispered to the girls. "It's an anagram, we only have to unscramble the letters!"

"Are you sure?" Liesl asked.

Maria nodded. "I used to love playing with anagrams in school. They can be such fun, and funny at times. My friends and I used to send each other messages this way. They usually appeared strange, like this one, until you placed the letters in the right order." Their faces were blank. "You see, you take a word or a sentence and scramble everything, so that it forms another word or sentence, with the same letters. For instance, _meal_ can be an anagram for _lame_."

"Oh, that reminds me of something," said Kurt.

"Not now, Kurt!" Friedrich and Louisa said in unison.

"This may take forever. There are thousands of possibilities," moaned Brigitta.

"It will take less than forever if all of us are trying at the same time," said Maria.

"Friedrich?"

"Yes, Louisa?"

"What is that thing in Latin that uncle Max said to father during dinner last night, and that made him laugh?"

"Why?"

"I think I just solved it," the girl stated proudly

"Really?" Maria asked. "I still have no clue."

"I wouldn't either, if I did not remember thinking that father rarely laughs. It _has_ to be it. It is so much like father… If you were there last night, Fraülein, I am sure you would have known it too." She gave Maria the paper where she had written the

"_In vino veritas…_" Maria had heard the saying before.

_The truth is in the wine…_

"Of course! The wine cellar!" Brigitta suggested, her eyes lighting up.

Gretl was about to cry out the answer for the whole villa to hear, but Liesl covered her mouth with her hand. "Quiet, we don't want the others to know, do we, Fraülein?"

"Not yet. Now, hurry to the cellar and claim that treasure."

"May I go too?" Gretl asked politely.

"Gretl, I'm supposed to stay with you the rest of the afternoon." Maria hated to break the young one's hopes.

"Then, you'll just have to come with us" she replied innocently.

"Gretl, I don't think…."

Friedrich suddenly grabbed his youngest sister up in his arms and playfully threw her over his shoulder. He turned to his governess and said, "Now you have to come with us." He turned and began following his siblings to the wine cellar.

Maria looked at the children heading into the house and then looked at the Captain. _Well, he does have a point_ she thought. She quietly stood up and followed the seven youngest von Trapps into the house. She never noticed the smile that graced the Captain's face as he watched his children and his governess come one step closer to finding the treasure.

A/N:

I wish to thank you all the reviews I have been receiving, in this an all my other stories. I really do love your comments, even though, as I said before, unfortunately I have no time to answer to all of them.

Some of you pointed to me that the correct spelling would be "Fräuline", and not "_Fräulein"_. My spell checker also says that to me, however, it is a German word, so I am keeping it in the original form, as it is spelled in that language. According to The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Here is the full dictionary entry: Fräu·lein (froi'līn', frou'-) n. _pl._ Fräulein _Abbr. _Frl. 1.Used as a courtesy title in a German-speaking area before the name of an unmarried woman or girl. 2. fräulein Used as a form of polite address for a girl or young woman in a German-speaking area. 3. _Chiefly British_ A German governess. So, "Fraülein Maria" it is!


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler". It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins about one week before the ball.

Disclaimer: The usual.

_**It is double pleasure to deceive the deceiver.**__**  
**_

_**Niccolo Machiavelli**_

"Look, the door is open and the stairs are lit," said Louisa, as they approached the cellar. The doors were usually kept under lock and key by their father. "This is a good sign; I think we may be right. The last clue is somewhere down here."

Maria followed the children down to the wine cellar – a place that had the younger von Trapp children had probably never visited.

"There is no one here," said Friedrich, when they arrived downstairs. But the Captain had obviously worked to impress his guests. There was only one source of light in the cellar, and it fell upon a heavy, and apparently very old, trunk on the floor. A treasure chest.

"Look at that," Marta exclaimed.

"Should we open it?" asked Kurt.

Louisa rolled her eyes. "Obviously!"

"Do you think the prize is inside? Do you think we really won this?" asked Brigitta.

"Children, I think we should wait for…" Maria began, but heavy footsteps coming from the stairs made them all turn around. It was a sound Maria had learned to recognize only too well. "… your father," she finished her sentence, her voice dying away.

"Good evening!"

"Good evening, Father."

He walked towards the treasure chest, then turned to look at the children incredulously. "You've solved the last clue." It was a statement, rather than a question. Then, seeing Maria following his children, his tone turned wry. "Unless, of course, your Fräulein is up to something _again_, so that there is a good reason for you to be here."

_What is the matter with him?_ Maria thought. _I am just standing here, I said nothing, and he is already barking at me._

The children began wandering around, in awe of the immaculate rows of wine bottles, produced in almost every corner of Europe. "Wasn't it the purpose of the game, Captain?" Maria felt a need to defend her actions.

"Who did it?," he asked, sounding suspicious. "The children…"

"… did most of the reasoning themselves," she rushed to defend her charges. "Louisa deciphered the anagram, but each one of them helped in solving every clue. It is their merit, not mine." Brigitta opened her mouth to speak, but Maria silenced her with a calming hand on her shoulder. "Now they are here to claim their prize, Captain."

"Are we really the first ones here, father?" Liesl asked as she turned from one of the old wine bottles she had been admiring, which had a particularly interesting label showing a medieval castle on top of a hill.

"Yes," he said, "You are the first ones in, Liesl. You won. All of you."

"We _won_!?" Gretl became excited.

"Yes, you won the game, but not the prize."

"What?" they asked, puzzled.

"Not yet. There is one final clue to be solved so that one of you may claim it."

"_One_ of us?" asked Louisa.

"Yes. I am afraid I made a _faux-pas_, but since my own children were victorious, I can easily fix it. I had not intended this game to be played in teams, so there is only one prize. The one who finds it may keep it, or decide to whom it will be given to. As for the others, we'll all go so Salzburg and you'll be able to pick your own treasures."

The children were very excited about the idea. But still they wanted _the prize,_ the coveted treasure, whatever it was. It was a matter of pride.

He gestured towards a large, heavy treasure chest that Marta had been admiring. Maria watched as Friedrich and Kurt opened it. There was a note inside – the last clue:

_**What fastens two people yet touches only one?**_

_**Find the one it touches and claim your prize.**_

Maria looked at the contents of the chest. It was filled to the top with a colorful variety of crystal beads, golden coins, and fake jewelry. It glittered like a pirate's treasure of any child's imagination, and the girls were clearly impressed. But she still could not see the one thing that fastened two people, but touched only one, and judging from the contents of the chest, it would be no easy task.

The Captain spoke again. "Just one thing children– you each get one chance, and only one. It is the least I can do to be fair to the other players."

"What about Fräulein Maria?" Gretl asked. "Can't she try?"

Looking at his governess who was captivated by the treasure chest, he answered quietly, "I don't see what that could hurt, since you helped the children."

_He feels that it does not matter if I play or not, because he thinks I cannot possibly win…_Maria looked up at the Captain. His expression said _you've come this far, but you will never be able to figure out this one._

The children decided by themselves that they each would try in the order of birth, beginning with Liesl. The girl knelt in front of the treasure chest. "_Fastens two, touches one…" _she whispered, scanning the glittering objects with her eyes. Then she stopped and smiled broadly. "I know! It is a wedding ring! Isn't it, father?" But the Captain only smiled.

_No, Liesl, it can´t be that easy,_ Maria thought.

Liesl then chose one of the many golden wedding bands she saw and gave it to her father.

"Very clever, Liesl. I am very proud of you. Right answer – wrong ring, however." He did seem very pleased with himself.

_The answer is in the question_, Maria thought.

"It's not this one?" she was clearly disappointed.

"No. You should all pay more attention to the clue."

_Find the one it touches.._.

Maria immediately guessed that it was a specific wedding ring that they should look for. She opened her mouth to warn the children, but the Captain silenced her.

"No more, Fraülein, please. They are on their own now."

One by one, the children searched inside the treasure chest. Each one presented a wedding band to the Captain, but none of the rings were the right one.

"Well," he began, impatiently, after none of them were successful, "as far as rules go, this game was a complete mockery. I concede that you children won the treasure hunt, but in all fairness to all other players, the prize will be given to whoever tells me which ring that solves the puzzle."

_He is looking for a specific ring. The children were right – some clues are mind games,_ Maria thought.

"But father," Liesl began, but he silenced her with a glance.

"This is _not_ fair," said Kurt, ignoring his father´s scowl.

Brigitta pleaded. "Isn't it Fräulein Maria's turn?"

"No, Brigitta, I really shouldn't!" Maria exclaimed.

"Please, father, we all worked so hard to get this far," said Louisa ignoring her governess.

It was his daughter´s tone of voice that convinced him. Louisa never pleaded anything. _She's too much like me_ he thought. "Yes, of course, if she wants to," he said.

_This is not what I planned. If she finds it… _he thought.

"Fraülein, you are our last hope," said Friedrich. "We cannot let that treasure fall into the enemy's hands!"

"Uh – the _enemy_ Friedrich?" the Captain asked.

"He means the Ba…" Gretl began, but was silenced by Brigitta with a scowl which was very much like her father´s.

"Are you children sure?" Maria asked.

"Yes! You know what to look for, don't you?"

"I – believe so. Captain?"

"Go on, Fraülein. You've earned it."

"Very well."

_It is like looking for a needle in a haystack, _Maria thought, thrusting her hand deep inside the treasure chest, relying on her sense of touch, rather than her eyesight, trying to find something. At the same time, the words of the riddle played in her head like a song. She was well aware of Captain von Trapp watching her all the time while he paced around the cramped cellar, appearing more towering and menacing than ever.

_I will find it,_ she thought. _I will show him. _

"Fraülein Maria, if you don´t know what to look for, then you should give some of the other players a chance," he said irritably, after she had fumbled inside the treasure chest for a few minutes, her actions causing some of the crystal beads to fall on the wooden floor and scatter around the immaculately clean floor of the cellar.

Kurt whispered to her. "If you don´t know what it is, Fraülein, grab any of them, the first ring you see. It is all we all did. You may be luckier."

_The first ring you see…_

The answer came to her as soon as her gaze fell upon the Captain, or rather the object which answered the Captain's riddle. Maria stared at his right hand, holding the silver whistle, already preparing himself to call the other players to the last challenge. She looked at his long, elegant fingers.

_What fastens two people yet touches only one?_

A wedding ring.

_Find the one it touches… Claim your prize__… The ring that touches the Captain… the ring that fastened him to the children's mother…_

Slowly, she removed her arm from deep inside the treasure filled chest. But her hand was empty.

Her face broke into a smile.

"Go, Fraülein. Please," Marta pleaded. "Don´t give up."

She had not given up. But it was her moment and she wanted to enjoy it to the fullest.

_Find the one it touches and claim your prize…_

"I am not giving up, children. The ring we should look for is not in the treasure chest." The children whispered to each other, not understanding what she meant. Maria looked up at the Captain, who was watching her, both wonder and disbelief etched in his face.

"Of course it is in the treasure chest" Where else would it… be…," Louisa protested, her voice dying away, when she noticed the odd look on her father´s face as he stared Fräulein Maria. She then looked at Fräulein Maria, who was looking at him with the same intensity, and something else - triumph.

Maria was the first to speak. "You all were correct this morning. Sometimes the answer _is_ in the question, right Captain?"

He raised his eyebrows, encouraging her silently to continue.

_Find the one it touches and claim your prize…_

Maria continued. "You see, it is not _any_ wedding ring your father wants us to point to."

His gaze challenged her to take the next step. With her eyes only, she fought back.

_I am not afraid of you. I am not afraid of looking at you, I am not afraid of touching you._

She slowly walked towards him. The whistle fell from his grasp as she neared him. She took his right hand in both of hers. He did not pull it away. He rewarded her with a genuine smile.

The children gasped in awe.

"You found it, Fräulein!" Gretl exclaimed.

"You did it! You solved it!" were the cries from the other children.

"I cannot believe you could bear to do something like this," she whispered incredulously.

He looked deeply into her eyes and whispered hoarsely, " You would be surprised by the things I am actually able to bear." Slowly, he pulled his hand from hers. Maria could hardly breathe, he was so close and looking at her with such intensity. She exhaled softly, "Captain…" she was interrupted by Marta tugging on her skirt.

"Does this mean we have to pick who win's father's prize?"

Tearing her eyes from the Captain, she looked down at her young charge. "I suppose it does Marta."

"Absolutely, but remember what I said – only one of you will get this prize, the others will get to pick out their own." He smiled at the beaming pair formed by Marta and Gretl, who nodded back in agreement. He looked to the rest of his children, never letting his eyes stray to the young governess. "You may claim your treasure now. There will be a – uh – small presentation ceremony at the gazebo. But first we should tell the others that we have a champion. _Eight,_ in fact." He took his boatswain whistle to alert the other players.

The treasure hunt had ended.

A/N: My thanks to my beta, and to all the reviewers. Please, keep sending me your feedback!


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler". It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins about one week before the ball._

_Well, what can I say, I could not resist. I am posting the two final chapters at once today. I am specially fond of the last chapter. Please let me know what you think!_

_Disclaimer: I absolutely do not own "The Sound of Music"._

_**And have you never known the pleasure and triumph of a lucky guess?**_

**_Jane Austen_**

_The treasure hunt had ended._

It took some time for the players to assemble at the gazebo - Baroness Schraeder, Baron and Baroness Eberfeld, Professor Schweiger, The Ambassador and his wife and Max Detweiler. They came from all directions, all wondering _who_ had managed to solve all of the Captain's riddles, and how that feat had been accomplished. The Captain waited until they were all there. The guests could not believe their eyes when they saw that _seven children_ had out-smarted them.

Max Detweiler came to stand next to Elsa, with a mischievous look on his face.

"Well, well, well," he began.

"Max, please. Not now."

"Baroness Machiavelli has fallen into her own trap. Oh, I even love the pun in that. Deceived by the deceiver." He turned, smirking at her

Elsa attempted to straighten Max's tie as she admonished him. "Darling, you know I _never_ make the same mistake twice. Yet, I must admit, I did everything wrong from the beginning."

"You mean _this_ is not what you had in mind?" asked Max, sarcastically gesturing towards the children, who were being greeted by Baroness Eberfeld. "You are loosing your touch, my darling. What is happening?"

"Oh Max. Help me!" She pleaded. "Things were looking so well this afternoon, I thought I had made some progress. Another ten minutes and he would have proposed to me. But then _she_ was there."

"Who? Gretl?" Max asked, feigning innocence.

"You know very well _who,_ you fiend. I don't know what to do now. I must think…"

"The ceremony is about to begin. You are going to hate me for this, but I wouldn't miss it for the world!"

"Here is your treasure," said the Captain, presenting a small navy blue plush case to his children. "Now remember, since you all won it, it will be your decision to whom it shall be given." He said that more for the guests than for his children. Slowly, he opened the case, as the guests gathered closer to see what the coveted prize was. Inside, on a bed of cream-colored satin, lay the diamond studded anchor pin. The light streaming through the glass walls made the tiny stones flash furiously in a rainbow of colors.

Maria had forgotten how lovely it was, she had forgotten the reason why she had chosen it until that moment.

"_Diamonds_," the Ambassador's wife exclaimed. "If I had known the prize had anything to do with diamonds, I might have tried harder. Why didn't you warn us, Georg?"

"All the von Trapp treasure hunts are for diamonds, my dear Clarissa. Didn't you know that? It is part of the tradition." The Baroness said, coming to stand next to the Captain to look at the prize in his hands. "How _quaint,_ darling. Lovely!" Then she turned to Maria. "Didn't I tell you every woman knew something about diamonds and men, dear? And you dared to doubt me!"

"Forgive me, Baroness, but being in the convent…"

Elsa ignored her and turned towards Georg. "Didn't Agathe own a little thing like that, Georg?" He cast a warning glance. "I remember, she wore it all the time."

"I remember, father," said Liesl. "You gave it to her when Brigitta was born."

"Yes, but hers had blue stones, not diamonds."

"They were sapphires, Louisa," Liesl informed knowingly.

"_You would be surprised by the things I am actually able to bear_," he had said earlier, his midnight blue eyes gazing deeply into hers. Now she fully understood the meaning of his words. _How could I have been so senseless?_ Maria closed her eyes for a moment.

First she had played a crucial part in convincing him to allow the treasure hunt, a diversion that was irrevocably linked to the children's mother. After that first blow, she had reluctantly accompanied him to town to pick the prize. Of all the trinkets and baubles available in Hans and Peggy's antique shop, she had to choose the only one which reminded him of his wife. Of course she had no way of knowing, but she could not help but blame herself. No wonder he was so exasperated with her ever since!

"All right, children, I am waiting for your orders. Who should I give this to?"

The seven von Trapp children did not even blink.

"Fraülein Maria," they said together. The small crowd instantly parted, leaving Maria, who was standing by the gazebo entrance, to face the Captain and Baroness, who stood in its center.

The Captain did not question their decision. In fact, as if afraid that someone would raise any objections, he did not wait for her to come to him. Instead, he gently took Elsa's arm from being entwined with his and walked towards Maria.

_Say something,_ her conscience warned. _You must refuse. You cannot accept this. What will they think? What will the Reverend Mother and Sister Berthe think? What will _he _think?_

"Your wish is my command." The Captain said to his children on his approach. "Fräulein," he said, ceremoniously handling her prize. Her fingers tremble as she reached for it. All she wanted to do was to run from so many prying eyes and to be alone.

"Thank you..." Maria murmured, still in awe. "I had not thought."

"You should thank my children, not I." He smiled, and bowed slightly, before he walked away from her.

"We would not have done it without Fräulein Maria, father," said Marta.

The Baroness approached Maria to admire the broach inside the open box, her long white fingers touching it lightly. She looked to the gathered crowd and addressed Marta's statement. "Naturally. Our resident nun is a very clever girl." She looked to the young woman next to her, and her voice dropped to a tone of pure irony. "Very, very clever."

Not realizing the Baroness's insinuation, Maria replied quickly. "Oh, no," it was the children, I… I was only doing my duty as a governess..."

"And that is something you would always do, isn't it dear?" She laughed and went to stand by the Captain, hooking her arm to his, again ignoring his warning glance.

Captain von Trapp paced restlessly in his study, waiting for the children's governess. She was late, as usual – the treasure hunt had ended nearly one hour ago, and so far she had not come to see him. He had specifically told her to do that as soon as the game was over.

_She's probably showing Gretl the correct way to climb a tree,_ he thought irritably. He opened the door, and gazed outside. Franz was walking down the hall, and he called him.

"Franz, have someone bring Fraülein Maria here _immediately_," he ordered, closing the door at the butler's face.

He resumed his pacing.

_This is not how I planned it,_ he thought. Fraülein Maria winning the ridiculous game had not been part of his strategy. Not because he thought she lacked the skill to do it, on the contrary – while writing the riddles, her image constantly came to his mind so that he instinctively knew that, if anyone was able to decipher them all, it would be _her_. No matter how far beyond her public school education some of the questions might have been, he knew she would know where to find the next clue not because she could find the answer, but because she knew _him_ somehow. The little tomboy had the most disturbing talent for mind reading. But not any mind -his mind.

Ever since he allowed himself to be convinced to allow that afternoon's spectacle, he began to devise a plan of action. He had to fight hard to make things his own way, and firmly refusing that the event should be like the grand, lavish treasure hunts like the ones Agathe loved to organized – he remembered having as many as 30 players searching the grounds one year. Elsa had finally settled on a small list of guests, carefully chosen among their closest friends. And he had done that because he had a purpose in mind, which would be much easier to be carried out in such circumstances. Fate worked on his side, because, in the last minute, three of the people who were invited were forced to decline the invitation.

That afternoon, he was going to make a wedding proposal. He would leave the grand, official announcement for the ball, but he had decided to surprise Elsa that day, in the presence of some of their dearest friends. It was the only thing to do, the right thing to do. _And the easiest_ his mind screamed.

His dark sense of humor also liked the fact that he would make her swallow her own words, for when she called him _unromantic_. Grimly, he remembered how his wife frequently accused him of being just the opposite. He had rehearsed a nice speech for the ceremonial presentation of the prize to the winner, and then he would take the engagement ring from his coat pocket, give it to her, and say, "_I believe this one rightfully belongs to you, darling_." That was the only reason why he had wracked his brain trying to find a riddle for which the answer was a wedding ring. Even the decision of having his own ring as an answer had been carefully planned, just for the very likely possibility that Elsa won the game – another reason for the restricted number of guests. _Would you like to replace it? _He would ask her, and then propose.

Afterwards, he would give her that outrageously expensive dragon locket as an engagement present.

Tactics. Strategy. Advanced planning – that is how his mind usually worked. And if there was something that was able to throw him out of balance, to drive him mad, was when something did not go according to his plans. Such occasions were rare, since, when planning anything, he accounted for every possibility. Had any of the players, even any of the children, succeeded, he would have no difficulty in carrying out his strategy. Had Elsa succeeded, things would be even easier.

But _she_ was the one to guess the final answer. The only one. _She_ had changed it all. The moment he noticed her staring at his right hand and was certain that she had read his thoughts again – at that moment, all his certainties of the past few days became doubts again.

Something broke inside him. For the first time in his life, he did not know what to do. It was a feeling previously unknown to him. He had faced innumerous life threatening situations at sea, and he had always known exactly what to do, even in the direst situations, and even if that meant contradicting the opinions of everyone around him, even his superior officers. All this because of his carefully designed strategies, accounting for every kind of possibility. That was what he was known for, that was the reasons he was awarded the highest honor given to an officer of the Imperial Navy. And then, when he made up his mind to marry Agathe Whitehead, he knew exactly what to do, when and how. Even when she died, besides the never ending pain and heartache, he also knew what to do. And once he had decided that marrying Elsa was the best thing for him and for his children, he knew what course of action to take.

However, the moment that little Fraülein touched his right hand, touched his wedding band, everything crumbled like a sand castle. He did not know anymore. And what he did know was so extraordinary his rational mind was still struggling to admit it as a possibility.

_I must find out,_ he thought. _I must._

_A/N: A huge thanks to maxisback for comments about this and all my other stories. And, as usual, to my beta for her patient work, correcting my grammar and spelling. Please, keep sending me your feedback!_


	11. Chapter 11

Treasures

_A/N: The story is set in that pleasant interlude between "Edelweiss" and "The Ländler". It takes place after "Underneath her wimple", and it begins about one week before the ball. _

_This is it - final chapter!_

_Disclaimer: I absolutely do not own "The Sound of Music"._

_**The soul that can speak through the eyes can also kiss with a gaze. **_

_**Gustavo Adolfo Becquer**_

In the sanctity of her room, Maria was able to examine the anchor brooch. She stared at it, laying inside its satin bed, in dismay, turning it this way or the other, watching how the little stones glittered with the light.

Unfortunately, there was no way she would be able to keep it – it had to be returned to the Captain. It should be given to one of the girls, probably Liesl, who would soon make her debut in the Viennese society, and would then be allowed to wear jewelry. It was too valuable too… _precious._ And even if she kept it, it would not be allowed in the convent. Even if she were able to keep it, she would have to give it up once she made her vows.

_I must return it._ It was the right thing to do, and yet the thought of parting with it caused a dull ache and an awful sense of _guilt_.

_It is only metal and stones, Maria,_ she tried to convince herself, but in vain. _It should not matter to you, you vowed to lead your life guided by higher purposes. _If she had seen it on a window display, she would probably feel that way, and it would be very easy to accept its loss. She would find the brooch pretty, and forget about it as soon as it was out of her sight. But _this one_ was different.

_Did the Reverend Mother know it would be like this? _Maria thought. _Did she know that after only a couple of months away from the Abbey, I would be coveting diamond jewelry?_ _No, it is not the diamonds. It can´t be the diamonds,_ Maria admitted. _It is…_

A knock at the door startled her, interrupting the dangerous path of her thoughts.

"Come in." The door opened revealing the elder housekeeper. "Yes, Frau Schmidt?"

The woman´s eyes quickly searched Maria´s dress for the anchor pin. By then, the news had reached the servant´s quarters, and there was little talk of anything else.

_Of course he did not pin it on me,_ Maria thought. _Why should I expect that he would do that? Had the professor won, he would _not_ pin the brooch on his lapel, would he?_

"The Captain asked me to remind you that he is expecting you in his study." Maria´s left hand went to her head. "I would run if I were you – Franz told me he is in a foul mood."

"Oh yes, of course. I had forgotten that. I will be down in a moment."

"And Fraülein?"

"Yes?"

"Very well done. Congratulations!"

"Thank you, but it was the children who…"

"If you say so," Frau Schmidt said with her mischievous smile, just before walking away.

_Why did she have the nagging feeling that people were congratulating her not for winning the brooch, but for something else?_

Maria knocked, but she did not wait for his answer. Her right hand clutched the blue plush box almost painfully. She had made up her mind to do what she had to do quickly. _Like ripping off the bandage from a wound,_ she thought. The faster it was done, the less it hurt. But first there was something else she had to say.

She ran up to his desk. "I did not mean it. Forgive me."

He looked up irritably at her. "Isn´t _knocking_ ever required at the Abbey?"

"I did knock. I didn´t wait for an answer because I was told that you were expecting me, and that I should _run_. So I did."

He accepted her feeble answer and asked for clarification from her. "What was it that you did not mean to do?"

"I did not mean to make you… I… I didn't realize… your wife…" He smiled at her inability to find the right words. "There was so much to choose from. Had I known, I would have chosen something else."

"You had no way of knowing, there is no need to apologize. You were hardly at fault."

"You should have told me, Captain. You could have said _not that one, Fraülein,_" she said, mimicking his tone lightly.

"Well, in my defense, Fraülein, I _did_ say that it was not original."

"Yes, but you never stopped me from choosing it."

"Please, don´t torture yourself. Apart from being an anchor, hers was very different."

"I know - sapphires. Captain," she hesitated. _Do it,_ she urged herself. "I am sorry, but I can´t possibly keep it." She flushed hotly under his intense gaze, and lowered her eyes to the tiny jewelry box she was holding in her hands.

"Because… it reminds me of my wife?"

"No," she answered immediately, which was enough to tell him that she was being truthful. "It … it is far too valuable." Carefully, she set the box in front of him.

He looked from the box to her mockingly. "Fraülein… forgive me, but I have no notion of how valuable a gift must be before it is acceptable by you."

She shook her head furiously. "I cannot keep it. Nuns don´t usually wear diamond pins. It wouldn´t be of any use for me at the Abbey."

"It's not because you don´t like it, you chose it yourself. What was it that you said then? _Well grounded hope, a seaman´s last resort in stormy weather_" he chanted dramatically. "Not to mention the diamonds – don´t bother to tell me that you are immune to them because after seeing you playing dress-up with Peggy Schneider I know that you are not – _Your Royal Highness,_" he added mockingly.

Her stomach did a summersault at the mention of her dress-up party. "Oh, no, I mean, the brooch is absolutely lovely. But although the Reverend Mother may roll her eyes like she does when I do anything… _unusual_, afterwards she would make me take it off and give it up." He found amusement in her babbling.

"To the poor?"

"To the poor, and you must agree, Captain, that it would be of little use to them either. The other nuns would also be scandalized. Sister Margaretta might laugh at first, but Sister Berthe would _not_ find it amusing, and I would probably end up scraping the floors with my toothbrush again".

"They made you do that?"

"Just once, when she found curlers under my wimple." He raised his eyebrows. "Besides, even if I could accept them, Captain, I... Where would I wear such a thing?"

"I thought you might wear it to the party."

Maria´s eyes widened. She did not even have a dress for the party. And even if she had one, it would do the delicate pin no justice. His mention of the party led her to another conclusion: _he was not going to fire her._ At least, not that day, she conceded. She felt like a ton had been lifted off her shoulders.

An image intruded in his mind. Maria – Fraülein Maria at the party, wearing that blue dress of hers, the diamond anchor pinned to her breast… looking at him while he made the official announcement of his engagement to the Baroness. His mind envisioned that her expression would be similar to the one he had seen earlier that day. As Elsa had wiped the lipstick from his face earlier, he had caught her reflection in the gazebo's windows. The look in her eyes haunted him even now.

_I can´t do it,_ he thought. _Not while she is around. What is it about this girl that has turned my world upside down? Why do I feel like I'm walking on eggshells every time Elsa and I move our relationship further? She's made a mockery of our social classes, she gives me a dressing down when she thinks I deserve one. I should be relieved when September comes, I should be glad to see her go. But I cringe every time she mentions Nonnberg. I cringe when I think she won't be with us… she won't be with me._

_W__hy?_

"Fraülein, I have a – a small favor to ask of you."

"Yes, Captain?"

"Keep it," he said simply. She made a motion to speak, but he silenced her with a gesture. "At least while you are with me – with _us_. You don´t have to take it to the Abbey when you return, if you don´t want to." She was about to protest, but he silenced her. "You have been good to the children – you are much more than a governess to them. Please, find it in your heart to accept it as a gift of appreciation, even it is a – uh – a temporary gift. It would make us all very happy. Does that make it _acceptable_ to you - Fraülein?"

She was silent for a few moments. "I – I don´t know what to say."

"Then I will take it as a yes." He smiled at her – that same odd smile she never fully understood, because it seemed to hold so many meanings. She was afraid to try to understand.

Reaching for the navy blue box, he stood up and walked around his desk. He took the delicate anchor, which appeared infinitely smaller and more delicate in his large hands. "Allow me, please," he said. His voice became softer, more intimate. "I realize now that I should have done this at the gazebo. It was terribly ill mannered of me. Forgive me." And he began pinning it to her dress.

She froze at his proximity, like the marble statue in the antique shop. The memory of seeing him with his hand on the statue's naked breast flashed before her. Her body quivered as his fingers fumbled with her dress to fix the brooch just over that part of her body. His fingers never touched her skin, never touched anything other than the coarse fabric of the dress she had made herself – but she could feel his warmth on her skin just as she was as nude as the marble statue.

_Dear God, what is happening? Why is this thing happening to me? Am I ill? _She was too emotionally disturbed to think straight.

"Thank you," she whispered as his hands dropped to his side.

"You're welcome." He replied in a quiet tone. She was so close to him. He looked down at her just as she raised her eyes to his. He searched the blue depths for answers, and found only questions in her eyes. He leaned forward, closer to her.

She stepped back, afraid of what she was feeling, afraid of what she was seeing. "I…I better go see about the children." She whispered and quickly hurried out of his study.

As he watcher her leave the room, he was struck with a sudden sense of isolation. He had called her there to clear his doubts, and yet he ended up with more questions than before.

Once back in her room, Maria saw things in a different light. She studied the brooch in the mirror. Yes, she would keep it.

Forever.

_I will make this my final transgression at the Abbey. _Even if it was only to remind her, when she was an old nun, that once in her life she had been a rebel, and that one day she had outsmarted one of Austria's greatest naval heroes. Maybe then the memories attached to it would help her to guide other _Maria´s_ who would certainly cross her path, just as the Mother Abbess had guided her. She would pin it to her underwear, where no one would ever find it. No one would be ever able to take it away from her. Just as Sister Clara´s bead had never been taken from her.

Sister Clara was one of the eldest nuns in Nonnberg. She passed away only months after Maria became a postulant there, and she had been assigned with the gruesome task of helping to dress her for the funeral. It was something that would give young and impressionable Maria nightmares for months to come. Pinned to Sister Clara´s undergarments, she found a single, ordinary, green Murano bead. It was attached to a narrow ribbon of the same color, and its state indicated that the nun had carried it with her for many years, possibly since before she became a postulant. Since Sister Clara had made a vow of silence, and had not spoken a word since she had taken her vows, no one ever found out the exact meaning of that green bead. No one had never seen it before. It would forever remain a mystery, but she could not help making up her own theories about it. Maria always believed that it was something of her former life that the nun was not able to let go.

A memory.

If Sister Clara was able to carry a memory for over sixty years, so would she. She would carry something of her life before the convent walls closed forever around her. Something that would always remind her of who she had been one day.

She tried to hang on to those thoughts, tried to convince herself that this was the one and only reason why she wanted to keep it with her forever. The only other explanation was outrageous to be considered rational.

_I must have imagined things,_ she concluded. _Stop thinking about him this way, Maria, you have no right. It is a sin – it is … _wrong!! _Remember the Abbey, remember your purpose in life, remember what you decided to do when you were barely fourteen years old, remember your promise._

But all she could remember were his eyes.

She never wanted to forget the look in them as he had had said "_you're welcome_." The look of something so tangible and yet so unidentifiable that she would wonder what it meant.

She wanted to remember everything about her time at the von Trapp villa. She wanted to remember how the Lord had guided her here for a purpose – to help the children prepare for a new mother.

She wanted something to remind her of this time, this place, his children, _him_.

She wanted to remember it all and never forget.

THE END – for now.

_A/N: That is it, another story ended. Next stop - "The Ländler". Thank you for all those of you who read it and reviewed it, encouraging me to keep going. And to my beta, for helping me find my way through the Captain´s riddles!_


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